HUNTING
by Donna McIntosh
Summary: Ennis is forced by financial circumstances to turn to Jack for help. The two of them struggle to build a cabin and a life together.


Title: HUNTING

Author: Donna McIntosh

Fandom: Brokeback Mountain

Genre: Slash

Rating: FRAO - Adult

Disclaimer: I do not own Brokeback Mountain and I make no money from these stories.

Beta: I want to thank Mike from the bottom of my heart for all his help and encouragement. Without his help this story would be a real mess.

Summary: Ennis is forced by financial circumstances to turn to Jack for help. The two of them struggle to build a cabin and a life together.

CHAPTER ONE

(December 1983/January 1984)

"Yes sir, Mr. Cole. I understand." Ennis folded his final paycheck and placed it in his wallet as he walked to his truck. "Well shit!" He lit a cigarette and drew deeply on it. He watched the snow build up on his windshield and decided he'd better head on home.

It was a cold wet January in Riverton to welcome in the New Year of 1984. Ennis snugged his hat down a little more as he made his way back to his truck. Another dead end. No one was hiring this time of year. The holidays were over with, spring was a long way off – this was not the time of year to be out looking for work. February came and went the same. He drove over to Alma's house; dreading every moment of the trip.

"You got the money or not?" Alma demanded angrily through the screen door; not inviting Ennis inside.

"Alma Jean... I ain't found any work. I can't pay you if I don't have the money!" Ennis pleaded standing on the front porch, hands buried in the pockets of his old brown corduroy jacket for protection from the icy wind.

"Well you damn well better find some! This is the second month month you haven't paid me! I'm not gonna put up with this, Ennis. My lawyer said to tell you that if I don't get the money you owe me by the fifteenth, that I can have you arrested!"

"Now what good would that do, Alma?" Ennis shuffled his feet nervously. The last thing he needed right now was to get thrown in jail. "I can't be out lookin for work if I'm sittin in jail; can I?"

"I don't care _what_ you do or who you do it with." Alma snarled at him. "I want my money!"

"You don't even need it, Alma." Ennis argued. "Jenny's been livin in Cheyenne with your sister since last August. I'm sure you ain't been sendin her the money I been givin you."

"It's none a your business what I do with the money, Ennis. The court said you have to pay me so you got no choice! You owe me for two months, and in three weeks another payment is due. You best find a way to come up with it or you're gonna find yourself sittin in a jail cell!" Alma threatened as she slammed the door in his face.

Ennis stood rooted to the spot for a few minutes wondering how he could make her understand that no one was hiring right now, and if no one was hiring – there's no way he could find work. He gave up for the moment and made his way down the steps and out across the slushy yard to his truck. He sat staring at the closed door and didn't even have enough energy left to curse her. She was nasty about it, sure enough, but she was right. He owed her the money. He'd have to find a way to come up with it.

The next day at the post office he tacked up a notice on the bulletin board with his phone number on it saying he had two horses to sell. He hated losing them, but he had no choice. His final check from Mr. Cole was long gone. He had twenty three dollars left and his truck needed gas again. He headed home thinking about food. He couldn't remember ever being so hungry. He needed a cigarette desperately but had been out for a month or more.

Arriving back at the trailer court, he found an eviction notice taped to his door. He had thirty days to vacate the premises. Great! He tore the note down, went inside and began fixing his one meal of the day. A baked potato. He still had a little butter left, and some catchup. He rinsed the potato off, and put it in the oven, then re-read the eviction notice again. Shit! Now what was he going to do. He'd been out of work nearly three months. And now he was without a place to live. All because Mrs. Cole decided she didn't want to spend another winter in Wyoming when both her sisters were now living in Miami in the Florida sunshine. So the ranch was sold and Ennis, and the other dozen or so hands, were out of a job and prowling the area looking for work just like he was.

He woke up the next morning coughing and sneezing. Just what he needed. His throat hurt and his eyes were burning; a sure sign that he was running a low-grade temperature. His fixed his coffee and drank it slowly, hoping it would somehow make him feel better. It didn't. He was hungry! Coffee had been his only breakfast for weeks now and it did nothing to fill his aching stomach; it only left him with nervous energy that faded fast. He needed to do something, and he needed to do it now. He picked up the phone – no dial tone. It was dead. The phone company had cut his service.

He took his jacket off the hook, shouldered into it, grabbed his hat, and headed for the door. A gust of damp air buffeted him as he made his truck. Another cold miserable day and it smelled like more rain was on the way. He drove to the post office, eying his gas gauge. Less than a quarter of a tank left.

A couple were standing by the bulletin board reading his note about the horses. A glimmer of hope warmed him. "You folks lookin to buy a couple a horses?" He asked.

"We're lookin for a mare, a palomino. This your ad?" The man asked.

"Yes sir, it is; but they're both geldings and neither one's a palomino." Ennis' heart sank. The folks checked their mail box and left. He felt desolate. Alone. And above all desperate. The last thing in the world he wanted was to part with was his horses. He had no choice though.

Two young men appeared beside him, reading his ad. "This your ad? How much you askin for your horses?"

"I need five hundred a piece for 'em; and they need to go together." Ennis said as hope once again reared it's head.

"I don't want two of 'em." The guy said. "And most I could give would be two fifty."

Ennis shook his head no. He was beyond words; beyond hope. His last chance walked out the door and he was alone. He had never known such despair. He stared at the door the two young men had just exited and noticed a police car pull up out front. He swallowed hard. It couldn't be for him! He still had a couple weeks left! He panicked as the two cops walked in; nodded at him and headed into the back.

He was weak with relief. They hadn't come for him! He still had time. He'd do something – but what?

His eyes settled on a phone booth there in the lobby. He stepped inside, closing the door behind him. He picked up the receiver and dialed 'O' for the operator.

"I need to place a collect call to Jack Twist in Childress, Texas." Ennis said and gave the number.

Jack shook two Tylenol out of the bottle and tossed them in his mouth, swallowing them down with the last of his coffee.

"Are you plannin on goin in to work or just layin around the house all day?" Lureen asked as she checked her makeup one last time.

"I'll come in later. I got this bad headache this mornin." Jack said as he munched on a piece of toast.

"Well I can't imagine why." Lureen said as she went through her briefcase to make sure she had everything she needed for her morning meeting. "You spend the entire weekend holed up in your study drinkin. It's a wonder you're able to function at all. You keep this up and you'll end up an alcoholic just like your uncle Harold. That's what killed him, you know. Rotted out his insides. That's what's gonna happen to you if you don't cut back."

"Let me be, Lureen." Jack tossed his toast back on it's plate and got up from the table. "I just need to lie down for an hour or so – let this Tylenol do its thing." He made his way upstairs to his bedroom and climbed back into his rumpled bed. He listened as the front door closed behind Lureen and she drove off. The silence in the house was a relief. He let his mind wander back to November and the little tent he and Ennis shared. It was bitterly cold, but with Ennis' arms around him, it didn't matter. Nothing mattered when he was with Ennis. His world was complete when they were together. It was the only thing in his life that made any sense.

The phone beside his bed sounded off and he glared at it angrily; hating that it disturbed his thoughts of Ennis. He let it ring several times, hoping whoever it was would just hang up, before sitting up with a sigh and answering it.

"Twist residence?" Jack said straining to sound pleasant.

"I have a collect call for a Jack Twist from Ennis del Mar in Riverton, Wyoming. Will you accept the charges?" The operator asked.

"What? Ennis? Yes, operator. Yes, I'll accept the charges." Jack swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood up, pacing the few seconds it took for the operator to put the connection through.

"Ennis? Ennis?" Jack asked sensing something must be terribly wrong for Ennis to call him.

"Jack?" Ennis stopped after saying the name. He just desperately needed to hear Jack's voice.

"Ennis, what is it? What's wrong?" Jack picked up the phone and carried it with him as he paced.

"Jack – I'm in trouble. Big trouble. I got no where else to turn." Ennis fumbled for the words.

"What is it? What's happened?" Jack demanded.

"I tried everythin, Jack; looked everywhere. I can't find nothin. They're gonna put me in jail, Jack, if I don't come up with the money."

"What money?" Jack asked. "What are you talkin about, Ennis. You can't be drunk this time a the mornin?"

"I ain't drunk, Jack. I'm broke. Dead broke." Ennis explained. "I can't find no work, I'm two months behind in payments to Alma. I got two weeks left to come up with it, and the last payment, or I'm goin to jail!"

"Alma wouldn't do that." Jack said, hoping he was right.

"Oh yes she would!" Ennis countered. "She already said. She talked to her lawyer about it. She said if I don't come up with all three payments she's gonna have me arrested and thrown in jail! She wasn't kiddin, Jack. She's gonna do it!"

"Shit, Ennis. What happened? I thought your payments were about up?" Jack asked.

"Next month should be my last payment, but I lost my job a couple a months ago, Jack. Mr. Cole sold the ranch. I been lookin everywhere but there's just no work of any kind to be found. They cut my phone off, and yesterday when I got home there was a note on my trailer. I got thirty days to get out. I got no job, and pretty soon I'll have no place to live. I tried to sell my horses to come up with the money, but the only offer I got was two-fifty and that wouldn't be enough. I don't know what to do, Jack."

"Jesus, Ennis! Why didn't you call me sooner?" Jack said as he dug his wallet out of his jeans that were lying in a pile on the floor. "Where are you; are you anywhere near a Western Union place?"

"I'm at the post office." Ennis said and looking around the lobby noticing a Western Union advertisement. "They got Western Union right here."

"Okay. What's the name of the post office?" Jack asked.

"Huh?" Ennis asked, puzzled by the question. "It ain't got no name. It's just the Riverton post office."

"The only one in Riverton?" Jack asked.

"Yeah; it's the only one." Ennis said.

"Okay, I'm gonna wire you some money and you take it and go pay your bills. Get your phone turned back on. You can't job hunt without a phone."

"I'll pay you back, Jack; I swear." Ennis said. "Soon as I get work, I'll send you a little each month until it's paid. That's a promise."

"Don't worry about it, Ennis. Money is nothin to me; you know that." Jack assured him.

"I know; but it means a lot to me cause I ain't got..." Ennis stopped mid sentence to sneeze several times.

"You don't sound so good. You sick?" Jack asked.

"It's nothin. Just woke up with a cold this mornin. It's all this nasty weather. Don't look like this winter is ever gonna end." Ennis said as he wiped his nose on his jacket shoulder.

"All right now, Cowboy. Listen up." Jack said. "I'll make my call and get the money to you. I want you to get your bills paid and go home and get into bed. You got any soup? Chicken noodle is the best thing when you've got a cold. You got any?"

"Jack, I got nothin but a couple a potatoes and a one pound bag a pinto beans. That's all I got left."

"Jesus!" Jack swore. "I'm gonna kick your ass for not callin me sooner, Cowboy. So pay your bills, hit the grocery store and stock up on some soup, crackers, and whatever food you feel like eatin. I'm gonna call you in a couple a hours. I'll keep callin until I can get through. If they can't get your phone back on today; I want you to get to a phone and call me back. You got all that?"

"I got it, Bud." Ennis said and choked up.

"You best call me at work. You got that number I gave you?" Jack asked.

"I do. You sure it won't cause any trouble, you sendin me money? I don't wanna get you in any trouble with Lureen." Ennis asked.

"You don't worry none about Lureen. I don't." Jack assured him. "The heater in your trailer work?"

"Yeah. More or less." Ennis said.

"You get your business done and get yourself home and into bed. And don't forget to call me! You hear?"

"I will." Ennis said with a sniffle and and a cough.

Jack hung up the phone and dialed for the operator and Western union; credit card in hand, he sent Ennis a thousand dollars.

There was no rest for him now, so took a hot shower and headed on into work.

Ennis fidgeted as he waited. If only he had a cigarette, he thought. A cigarette would make the waiting easier. A woman walked into the post office, ditched her cigarette in the sand-filled ash can by the counter and went about her business of mailing a package. Ennis stared at the cigarette sticking out of the sand. It wasn't even half gone! If she'd just leave, he could walk over to the counter and ask the guy something and just casually reach down and pick the cigarette up. He fingered the lighter in his jacket pocket. Just a few puffs. That's all he needed.

The woman left and an old man wandered in. He asked the man behind the counter a question or two, then bent down and pulled the cigarette from the sand and stuck it in his pocket. Damn! Ennis thought. There went his cigarette!

"Can I help you?" Ennis was startled by the voice at first. He wasn't up at the counter and didn't think it could be intended for him, but a quick look around the lobby showed no one else there but him. He looked up to find the man looking directly at him. "Sir? Did you need something?"

"Um... yeah." Ennis said as he approached the counter. "My buddy just Western Unioned me some money. I was waitin for it."

"Oh. I'll check in the back. They handle that back there." The man said and disappeared into the back.

Ennis looked down at the ash tray and it was empty. The old man had taken care of that. Damn him! Ennis cursed silently. I _needed _that cigarette!

"It will be just one moment sir." The man had returned. "They're typing up the check right now."

"Check? I thought it'd be cash?" Ennis asked.

"It's a cashier's check. Good as cash. You can take it to any bank and cash it."

"Oh. Okay. Thanks." Ennis said.

A man walked in from the back and handed the check over to the man at the counter. "All we need now is some I.D." The man said with a smile.

Ennis produced his driver's license, signed for the check, and left. He headed straight for the bank. It wasn't until he was standing in front of the teller did he unfold the check and notice the amount. A thousand dollars! Jack had sent him a _thousand dollars!_

"Sir? May I help you?" The teller asked.

"Uh... yeah. I need to cash this check." He signed the back and handed it to her.

"How do you want it?" The teller asked.

"Huh?" Ennis asked, puzzled by the question.

"Do you want it in hundreds, twenties, or do you need money orders?" The teller asked.

"Oh. That's a good idea. I need a money order for three hundred seventy five dollars. The rest you can give me half in hundreds and half in twenties."

The teller did her do and in a few moments she placed the money order in front of him and counted out the six hundred twenty five dollars remaining. Ennis gathered up the cash and stuck it in his wallet. The money order he took over to the table and wrote in Alma's name and added at the bottom, 'last three child support checks'. Then as an after thought wrote in 'Paid In Full', before stuffing it in his pocket and heading out the door.

The wind was blowing, and again it was out of the north. It was almost March. Would this winter ever end? Behind the wheel of his pickup, he took his wallet out and looked at the money. He'd never had that much cash money before in his whole life. His paychecks from Mr. Cole were just a hundred twenty six a week. Nothing compared to what Jack must make; he thought. His stomach growled and he doubled over at the pain. He had to get something to eat!

First he stopped at the phone company and paid his bill, then headed for the grocery store. The one up on the highway. He had no desire to shop at Monroe's store. He had thought to just get a few things – some chicken noodle soup like Jack suggested – but instead of the little hand basket he usually got when he shopped, he pulled out a shopping cart. A short time later he was standing at the checkout and handing over one hundred and six dollars. He was stunned that he had spent that much but his hunger was gnawing at him and his desperation to get his items loaded into the back of the truck took priority. He dug through the bags until he found the carton of cigarettes; found it, and jumped up behind the wheel just as the rain started. He sat and smoked the entire cigarette, relishing every breath, even though it did make him cough. He didn't care. It was the best cigarette he had ever smoked!

Once again the stomach cramps hit so he keyed the ignition and headed over to Alma's house. Up on the porch he knocked three times before she finally answered.

"What do you want, Ennis? I told you when you was here before. I don't want no more a your excuses. I want my money!" Alma greeted him through the screen.

"Here!" Ennis handed her the money order.

"Where'd you get this?" Alma demanded angrily. "Is it any good?"

"Where I got it is none a your business. You see what it says there at the bottom? Paid in full! That's the last a what I owe you. I don't owe you one penny more!"

"IF this is any good." Alma said as she looked the money order over carefully.

"It's good. It just come from the bank." Ennis said as he turned to leave.

"Don't you even wanna ask about the girls? God knows you never been any kind of a husband but I thought you at least cared about the girls."

"I write the girls, and they write to me. If I need to know somethin, they'll tell me. And as for God knowin anythin, I'm sure he's aware of just what a total bitch you are!" With that said, he galloped down the stairs and ran through the rain to his truck; Alma yelling and waving an angry fist at him.

He drove home with a smile on his face. This was turning out to be a great day after all! Once he got some of that chicken noodle soup in him, he'd be a new man. He hauled his groceries inside, flipped the light switch and it didn't come on. Bulb must be burned out, he thought. He opened the fridge to put the cold stuff away and it was dark inside. "What the..." He tried the other light. It didn't come on.

"Damn!"

Back out into the rain he went, jumped into the truck and headed back into town, eying the gas gauge as it crept towards empty. He drove to the electric company, went in and paid the bill. Another eighty three dollars gone. He felt weak, sick to his stomach, and tired beyond belief. He had another coughing spell. He needed to eat! He drove over to the local hamburger joint and entered the drive through. Thank goodness it was empty and he got right up to the window. He ordered a burger, fries, and a Coke. It seemed like an eternity sitting there smelling all the good smells coming through the window, but finally the girl handed him his order. He paid quickly and drove to a parking space and devoured his burger in very few bites. The coke was a mistake. It hurt his throat to drink it. He didn't care. He drank it anyway. With the burger gone, he headed home, munching on fries as he went.

Once inside it was dark and cold. He wondered how long it would take to get the electricity back on. He couldn't worry about that right now. He undressed quickly, pulled on his pajamas and climbed into bed. Jack was right. This was what he needed. Bed. He couldn't ever remember being in bed in the middle of the day before. He pulled the covers up around his neck and waited for the shivering to stop. He reached over and tried the phone. It was still dead. He wished they would hurry up and connect him. He needed to call Jack and thank him, and he sure didn't want to go out into the cold again. He snuggled down into the covers and dozed off.

He woke up two hours later when a coughing fit roused him. He got up, searched through the groceries that he hadn't yet put away and found the Tylenol and cough medicine. He swallowed the Tylenol first, then took a spoonful of cough medicine. It burned as it went down but he felt almost instant relief from it. He sat back down on his bed pulling the covers up around his shoulders. He tried the phone again and this time had a dial tone.

He grabbed up his pack of cigarettes and lighter, and dialed Jack's office number.

"Jack Twist here; how can I help you today?" Jack's sweet voice came through the line.

Ennis smiled. "You already helped me more than anybody else in the world ever has."

"Ennis!" Jack jumped up and closed his office door. "How are you; you sound awful!"

Ennis struggled to clear his throat. "I just got this damn cold, Bud."

"Did you get the money? Did you get some a that chicken noodle soup?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, I got the money, Jack and I ain't got the words in me to tell you how much I appreciate what you done for me. I'll pay you back, Jack. Every single penny – I promise! Soon as I find work, I'll start makin payments."

"Oh forget about the money, Cowboy. How about the soup? Did you get some a that in you?"

"Well, I bought some. Fact is, I bought a hundred dollars a groceries; but when I got home – the electricity was cut off."

"Oh no!" Jack cried.

"Yeah. I went back out and paid it, but I knew it'd be some time before they'd get it back on and I was really hungry so I stopped at a burger place. I know it ain't what was best, but I needed to eat and that was the quickest."

"Okay, okay. At least you got somethin in your stomach." Jack said. "So did I send you enough to get all your bills paid up?"

"Yeah, Bud. More than enough." Ennis said. "I ain't been over to the office yet to pay my trailer rent but I was tired a runnin around in the rain, so I came home and went to bed. I just woke up a few minutes ago and checked the phone again and found it workin so I called you."

"Oh Jeez, Ennis. You been runnin around in the rain with that cold? You'd better watch it or it'll turn into pneumonia."

"I'm lookin after myself, Jack. I got some Tylenol and some cough medicine. I ain't goin out again until that rain stops. I got no where to go anyway."

"Ennis, I been thinkin." Jack said.

"You always were a great thinker, Jack. I think I told you that once."

"Yeah, you did. That was a couple years ago. I remember that. It really pissed me off."

"You still mad at me about it?" Ennis asked.

"Nah. But I'd really appreciate it if you'd hear me out; let me tell you what I got on my mind. Could you do that?"

"Jack, I'll do anythin for you; anythin."

"All right then don't say nothin until I'm finished. I got a whole lot on my mind and I want to get it all out. Then we can discuss it. Fair enough?"

"Okay." Ennis said as he lit a cigarette and leaned back against the wall. "Go ahead. I'm listenin."

"And you're not gonna butt in until I'm finished sayin what I got a say?" Jack asked.

"Promise." Ennis said.

"Okay. Here it is." Jack leaned back in his chair, rocking a little as he laid out his plan. "This is what I think we ought to do. First I got a ask you one question. Realistically, what do you think the chances are a you findin work there in Riverton – say in the next few months?"

"Realistically? I'd say slim to none." Ennis answered truthfully. "Ranch work picks up this time a year, but everyone I talked to has all the men they need; and I talked to just about every ranch owner within a hundred mile drive a Riverton."

"That's about what I thought." Jack said. "So in order for you to find any work, you're going to have to move. With both your girls gone, you got nothin tyin you to Riverton?"

"That's right." Ennis said.

"Okay then; I think you should come to Lightnin Flat and work for me." Jack said and was met with dead silence.

"Lightnin Flat?" Ennis managed to choke out. "You jokin, Jack?"

"No. I'm not jokin, Cowboy. This is what I been thinkin. I don't know if I ever told you or not, but the folks ranch come down from my Mom's family. It was just her and her daddy left when he took sick with cancer. Her daddy was afraid a leavin her alone, so he made arrangements with their hired hand, John Twist, to marry her. In return, grampa signed the ranch over to him in his will. That's how I always heard it told. But a few years ago, I was talking with Mom about it and she said the will said that the ranch would be one third dads, one third moms, and the remaining third would go to any children they'd have. That makes the place one third mine, and one third moms." Jack stopped for a breather and lit a cigarette. "You still with me here?"

"Yep; I'm listenin." Ennis said, but was beginning to dread where the conversation was going.

"Okay. Now dad was seventy years old last birthday, and he hasn't been working but just a small part a the ranch. That's all he can handle. You know how those old ranches were set out in forty-acre pastures? Three across the back, three across the middle, and three across the front; making up a three-hundred-sixty acre section?"

"Yeah. That's how most a those old ranches were set up." Ennis agreed.

"Well he ain't been usin but the front three now for years. The back six have been left to go to seed and it's good ground, Ennis. Real good ground. What I was thinkin was, what if you and me was to work that back part? It wouldn't bother him none, it'd be a hundred twenty acres, and it's free and clear. No mortgage payments to worry about, no bank notes, nothin but whatever you and me could do with it. And there'd still be another hundred twenty acres between us and the part he's usin. So it's not like we'd be right up next to 'em."

"What's back there?" Ennis asked, his interest peaked just a little.

"Well the north west forty is in woods, the other two are mainly brush and some smaller trees that we could take down easy enough. We'd have all the fire wood we'd need, and even some trees to build us a little cabin." Jack answered.

"You ever build a cabin before, Jack?" Ennis asked.

"Nope. But I figure if all those settlers could do it a hundred years ago, that between the two of us, we ought to be able to figure it out. Didn't you say you did some building for Mr. Cole?"

"Yeah, but not a whole buildin, Jack. We built on a family room an extra bedroom and bathroom one summer. Other than that, my only building experience has been repairin barns or buildin chicken coops, and rabbit hutches."

"We wouldn't need nothin fancy. Just somethin to keep the wind off. Didn't you tell me you built a fireplace?" Jack asked.

"I _helped _build a fireplace, Jack. That's a lot different from buildin it."

"Well you know how it's done then." Jack said with a confident smile. "We knock us together some kind a little building, and you build us a fireplace to keep us warm. What else do we need?"

"Jack, this is all crazy talk. We couldn't do nothin like that."

"Why not?" Jack asked with a sigh, preparing to be shot down again.

"What would your folks think?" Ennis asked, sure that he had the perfect argument.

"Now don't get mad – but I already called Mom and talked to her about it."

"Jack!"

"She's over the moon at the idea. She says we could have the entire back area that they're not using. That'd be two-hundred-forty acres." Jack said.

"Jack... what about water? We'd need a well, and they cost a lot a money to set up; and what about electricity? You got any idea what it'd cost to run electrics back there?"

"That's the beauty of this situation, Cowboy. The original home was set up in the middle section, so that's where the well is. When granddad built the new house, he set it in the front and just had the water piped over to it."

"So there'd be access to the well?" Ennis asked.

"Yes! And there is electricity out that far. Of course if we wanted to run it out to the very back, that'd cost us; but that's something we could do later on down the road after we got the place up and runnin, with some money comin in."

"That'd be years, Jack. Did you think about that?"

"I did. And Momma already said that we could get us some extensions and run it off their electricity bill. She said we could make arrangements to pay any increase it might cause. I was figurin maybe we could make a deal with dad to do some huntin, maybe get us an elk and share half with 'em in exchange for the electricity. That way it wouldn't cost us nothin."

"You said you discussed it with your Mom. What about your dad?" Ennis asked. "What's he gonna say?"

"The same thing he always says when he sees me. He'll holler, and curse, and call us names, and make threats. That's what he always does – that's just the way he is. But he's got no say in this. Remember what I said, he's one third owner a the place. Me and momma own two thirds so we got the say. Not him."

"And how far is Lightnin Flat from the nearest town a any size?" Ennis asked.

"Well it's about sixty miles east a Sheridan, about the same from Buffalo, and about fifty miles due north a Gillette. We could look for work there. It'd be a long drive, but maybe we could find somethin part time, and work our place on our days off. That'd give us a little money comin in."

"Jack, it all sounds nice, but there's a whole lot a stuff we'd need to get started – a tractor, lots a tools, stuff like that. We probably could build us a little place, but we can't do it without tools and all I got is just a small tool box. Nothin like what we'd need. And you plannin on sleepin out in the woods till we get this cabin built? That could take months."

"I been thinkin about all that. First of all, and most expensive, a tractor. I think I can get us one for nothin. I'm in the farm machinery business, remember? We take trade ins. We got a couple used tractors on the lot right now."

"How you figure on gettin one for free? Even used, they are worth a lot a money." Ennis said.

"Well there's one tiny little fact that I never mentioned before because it never mattered to me. But about five or six years ago, when old man Newsome passed, Lureen got together with her lawyer and set up everything a little different than it was. She put the business, and all her properties, in all our names; hers, mine, and Bobby's; for tax purposes or somethin. So I'm one third owner a all her stuff."

"Jack; you can't just take it."

"No, that's not what I'm talkin about. I wouldn't do that. I don't want any of it, it's not mine, none of it. When I tell her I want a divorce, she'll immediately go into spasms about all her holdings. All I need to do is tell her I'll sign everythin back over to her, in exchange of one a those used tractors. It's a good deal, Ennis. I can't see that she'd complain about it."

"I guess so." Ennis said.

"That would get us a workin tractor. I'm not sure what shape those two we got on the lot are in, but they have to be in workin order or we don't accept them as trade-ins. And as to the other tools, I got a little money, not much. A few thousand – maybe five or six. That'd be enough to get us started. What do you think?"

"What about neighbors? You got any nosy neighbors we'd have to be worryin about?" Ennis asked.

"The place on the west side belonged to the Miller family. They moved on years ago. There's been a 'For Sale' sign hangin on their fence since I was a kid in school. The other side, old Mrs. Gardner lives there with her sister. They don't ranch any more; they're both widows, just livin there alone. They'rer like in their eighties or somethin. They don't bother nobody and nobody bothers them. They mostly just keep to themselves."

"And when you figure on doin all this?" Ennis asked.

Jack sucked in a deep breath and held it. He couldn't believe it. Ennis hadn't said no! "I was thinkin a talkin to Lureen this evenin after work. She has some big meetin today so I won't get to talk with her before then."

"This evenin." Ennis said, mulling everything over.

"I might need a day or two for her to get papers ready for me to sign. If it takes longer than that, I'll just have her mail them to me. That should give you a couple a days to get to feelin better—maybe get over that cold." Jack said, still not believing that Ennis was actually considering the proposition.

"Jack, I gotta ask you this so don't get mad." Ennis said.

Jack's heart began to sink. "What?"

"If it don't work out – I mean – you know what I mean. If there's any... trouble; I could leave – and you wouldn't end up hatin me? We could go back to the way things used to be? We could still see each other and all?"

"Yes! Absolutely!" Jack assured him; filled with hope once again. "But nothin's gonna happen, Cowboy. Nothin but you and me buildin a life together."

"Well – I don't see that I got any other options." Ennis said. "I'll come to Lightnin Flat with you Bud, and help you build a cabin. We'll see how things go. If we don't rock the boat too much, people might leave us alone. If not, I'll head off to Sheridan or Gillette and find work and I can always come out to your place weekends and help out."

Jack wanted to jump through the phone, he wanted to scream and shout but he was in his office and couldn't do that. He took a couple deep breaths before saying, "Okay then. I'll talk with Lureen tonight and get that squared away. I'll call you in the morning and let you know when I'll be up there."

"Sounds good." Ennis said.

"You take care of yourself now, Cowboy. Keep yourself warm as you can and stay in out a that rain. The only thing that matters right now is for you to get rid of that cold."

"I ain't plannin on steppin foot out a this place right now." Ennis promised.

"Good. There's no need to. You said you got food, and you got your bills paid. Did you pay Alma off?"

"I sure did. I gave her the final three payments. I give it to her in a money order. She didn't like that none as I've always paid her in cash before; but I wanted a receipt. As nasty as she's been lately, I wouldn't put it past her to claim I didn't pay."

"Okay, great. So you've got food, you got your bills paid, and your electricity should be comin back on soon. You got no reason to go out at all. You stay inside and keep yourself warm as you can. I'll be up there in a few days and we'll get on with things. How does that sound?"

"Sounds like a fine plan, Bud. Can't hardly wait to see you." Ennis said holding the phone a little closer. It was almost like holding Jack. "I sure miss you."

"I'll be there soon, Cowboy. You just keep that thought." Jack said. "I'll call you in the mornin."

"I'll be waitin." Ennis said and hung up the phone reluctantly. He didn't want to let go of Jack – even just his voice. It pleased him in more ways than he could understand. As he replaced the receiver, the lights came back on. He could hear the refrigerator humming. He got up and fixed himself a can of chicken noodle soup. It was amazing. Just stirring it made him feel better already.

"So what was it you wanted to talk with me about, Jack?" Lureen asked as she swept into the living room fresh from her after dinner bath. "I know somethin's been botherin you lately. You've been so down. You know, I was thinkin. Why don't the two of us take a little trip? Why don't we try out one of those cruises? I know you'd love it, Jack, if you'd just give it a chance. We could go any where you want; what do you say?"

"I'm moving back home to Lightnin Flat." Jack said, not seeing any need to prolong the matter and longer than necessary.

"What?" Lureen gasped. "What did you say?"

"You heard me. I've made my decision. I'm goin home." Jack said.

"What are you talkin about? You ARE home!" Lureen was stunned.

"This ain't my home, Lureen. It's yours. This house is yours, Texas is your home. It ain't mine and I wanna go home."

"Jack – you can't be serious. You hate it there! You've told me a thousand times. Has somethin happened? Did your dad get sick again or somethin?"

"No, Lureen. Nothin like that has happened... yet." Jack said. "And it's ridiculous for me to sit around and wait until he's in such bad shape that he can't work the place any more. I want to go now while I'm still young enough to get the place up and workin the way it should be."

"But... you know ranchin isn't what it used to be. You'll never make that place into a money maker."

"I don't care, Lureen. I don't need it to make buckets a money. All I need is for it to support me and what's left of my family. It's for me to do, Lureen; and I'm gonna do it."

"Okay, so you go up there and work the place for a while. I can make arrangements to get another salesman trained to handle your position while you're gone."

"Lureen – this move is going to be permanent. I won't be comin back." Jack said hoping that she'd finally get his drift and bring up the subject of divorce.

"I see." Lureen said as she lit a cigarette and puffed on it angrily. "You're asking for a divorce then?"

"Yes." Jack said and then quickly added. "I don't want us to part as enemies, Lureen. You been too good to me all these years."

"And I suppose you'll be expectin a nice settlement?" Lureen asked as she stood and began to pace.

"No, honey." Jack assured her. "I know you put all your holdings partly in my name back when your daddy passed. But I'm more than willin to sign all a that back over to you. It's yours, yours and Bobby's. I ain't askin for none a that."

"Well what then? What do you want; a monthly support check? How much are we talkin here?"

"No, Lureen. What I was thinkin was the one thing that I'll really need and that's a tractor..."

Lureen cut him off before he got any further. "You'll be willin to sign everythin over to me, and askin for no monthly support, just for a tractor?"

"That's right." Jack said. It dawned on him that she was working out the details in her head as she talked. He might just get this to work. He bit the inside of his cheeks to keep from grinning. As he thought – her only concern was financial. It didn't really surprise him.

"You'd be willin to sign papers? It'd be a no-fault divorce. You wouldn't have to appear. It could all be handled discretely."

"That's right." Jack said. "I'm plannin on leavin within the next day or two. You think you can get your lawyer to draw up the papers by then?"

"Uh... sure. I pay him enough. He'll get them ready if he has to type them up himself." She said as she wandered around the room lost in thought.

"All I want is just my own stuff; my truck, campin gear, personal stuff. And if you can get me a tractor worked in the deal, that's all I'll need." Jack assured her.

"I can work that." She said. "I suppose you'll want the new John Deere that just came in?"

"No; not necessarily. There's a couple in the back I was thinkin..."

"Oh, you mean last years model that we were waitin on sendin back? All right. If that's the one you want. It's yours. It's got all the attachments and it's brand new. You want that old blue trailer that's out there? I've got a new one on order that's supposed to be here this week. You may as well take that. It'll save me havin to call some one to haul it away. Get Reggie to put some new tires on it. It should make the trip to Lightnin Flat all right."

Jack couldn't believe his luck! He was getting a new tractor! True it was last years model, but what did he care – it was brand new, top of the line, with all the attachments! He couldn't wait to tell Ennis.

"All right. If you're sure you won't need it." Jack said carefully schooling his emotions so that Lureen didn't detect his glee.

"No; I don't want that old thing. It's bad for business. When we're deliverin a hundred thousand dollar piece a machinery, it don't look good if you show up with it in a beat up old trailer." Lureen assured him before asking, "Okay then. Anything else?"

"No; that's it." Jack said, hoping that she wouldn't change her mind, or adding anything to the deal that would delay his departure.

"Okay. I'll see the lawyer first thing in the mornin and have him draw up the papers. I'll see to it we have somethin for you to sign before you leave."

"Thank you, Lureen. I want you to know that I appreciate how sweet you're bein about all this."

"You never asked me for anythin in the eighteen years we been married, Jack. Never. You never took the credit cards I gave you and went crazy with 'em, like some people I could mention. You did everythin I ever asked you to do. Even put up with daddy and his foul accusations. This is the only thing you've ever asked from me. How could I refuse?"

Jack had nothing to say to that so he stood silent, hoping that the conversation was over with. It was.

"Will you be comin in to work in the mornin, or should I call you here?" Lureen asked.

"Aaa... I'll be by for a bit to clear out my desk. I've got a couple of deals workin, you want me to hand them over to Fredericks or Dixon?"

"Dixon." Lureen said. More comfortable now that they were talking business. "He should be able to close if there's anythin to them."

"Okay. I think I'll leave the trailer and tractor on the lot until I'm ready to leave; if that's okay. I'll need to get out tomorrow and get my truck serviced, and pack. Is there anythin you need for me to do before I go?"

"No." Lureen answered after a moments thought. "I'll take care of the legal stuff, and if you don't mind, I'd like to wait and tell Bobby when he gets home on spring break."

"That's fine. I'm sure it will be a lot easier for him hearin it from you." Jack said.

"All right then. I'll see you in the morning." She left the room then and Jack headed for his study.

"YES!" Jack said aloud, grinning and pumping his fist in the air. He toyed with the idea of phoning Ennis but decided to wait until tomorrow. He didn't want to take the chance of waking him. It was a rough night, but he finally fell asleep.

Jack awoke the next morning to the sound of a horn honking out front. He rolled over and looked at the clock, stunned to see it was after nine! He jumped up, took a quick shower, got dressed. He checked to make sure he was alone in the house before closing his study door and dialing Ennis' number.

"Yeah?" A sleepy-headed Ennis answered.

"Oh I'm sorry, Cowboy. Did I wake you?" Jack asked.

"Ummm What time is it?" Ennis asked.

"Nine-thirty. How are you feelin?" Jack asked.

"Haven't been awake long enough to know." Ennis grinned, thrilled at being woken up with Jack's sweet voice.

"Well when you figure it out; let me know." Jack teased.

"Actually... I feel pretty good. I slept good. That cough medicine is pretty strong." Ennis said.

"Good." Jack said. "I'm glad you slept well. You sound better than you did yesterday."

"You got some news for me?" Ennis asked. "You be up here in the next couple a days?"

"I do." Jack answered. "I'll be there tomorrow night, late. I got papers to sign. After that I can hit the road."

"Good. Good." Ennis said.

"Is it still rainin there?" Jack asked.

"Nah. Looks like it finally stopped." Ennis said as he pulled back the curtain over the kitchen sink and peered out. "Sun's shinin."

"That sounds good. You have any plans for today?" Jack asked.

"Nope. Just walkin over to the office to pay the back rent, and then maybe some packin." Ennis said.

"Sounds like a perfect plan to me." Jack grinned. "Don't tire yourself out now. I can help you when I get there if you're not ready."

"Oh I'll be ready, Jack. You can count on that."

Jack's spirits soared. "Can't hardly wait, Cowboy."

"Me too, Bud. Me too." Ennis assured him.

"All right. I got a get goin. I got lots to do this mornin." Jack said and then asked. "It'd be all right if I call you this evenin?"

"Sure thing." Ennis said. "Long as you ain't worried about this number showin up on your phone bill."

"I'm not worried about that. I make lots a business calls on this phone. I'm sure Lureen or her accountant don't check every one of 'em out. If they do – so what? The deal's been made. Papers get signed tomorrow. Nothin anyone can do about it then. Not that they'd be interested in doin anythin anyway. What could they find out? Just that I called my fishin buddy to tell him I'm movin up there. Don't see how that could trouble anybody."

"All right." Ennis said. "Talk to you this evenin then."

"Yeah; this evenin." Jack said.

He hung up and headed into the office going directly out back and spoke with Reggie about new tires for the old trailer. Back in his office he went through his desk and pulled out the two files for Dixon. He emptied his desk drawers of anything personal and was about to leave when Lureen came in.

"Oh good, you're still here." She said as she breezed in. "We should have papers ready for you to sign first thing tomorrow morning. Is that soon enough?"

"Absolutely. That's perfect. What about the tractor? Did you get that included?" Jack asked.

"I did. That and the trailer too. I just have to get the vin numbers for both of them and call it over so it can be included in the paperwork. You wanna be a darlin and get those for me? I just hate walkin around back there in my heels."

"Sure thing. I'll get 'em right now. I was just finishin up here." Jack said.

"Is that the files for your two deals?" She asked pointing to the folders out on Jack's desk.

"Yeah." Jack said.

"Give them to me. I'll see that Dixon gets them. I've called a staff meeting for this afternoon. I'll give them to him then." Lureen said.

"All right. Thanks." Jack said. "I'll get you those numbers and be on my way then."

"Sounds good." She gave him a smile and left – as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Nothing interfered with her business. Nothing.

By the time he had gotten the numbers, she was busy on the phone so he just handed the paper to her and left.

He sat and read the newspaper while he waited for the service man to finish with his truck. He flipped through the ads in back and found exactly what he was looking for. He paid the man and left. A quick stop at the bank as he emptied his account and headed for Birmingham Street.

"Are you interested in just the tent or do you want the rest of it?" Mrs. Speller asked as Jack inspected the large three room tent she had set up out in her back yard.

"The rest?" Jack asked.

"The rest of the campin stuff?" Mrs. Speller said. "You need any of that? I was kind of hopin to sell it all as a package deal. I need to get rid of all of it. With us movin in with our son, we just won't have room for it, and they're not the least bit interested in campin."

"What else do you have? I guess I just stopped readin your ad once I saw you had a three-room tent. That's exactly what I was lookin for." Jack smiled at her.

"Oh, there's all sorts a stuff. A porta-potty, a screened extra room, and there's some air mattresses, fold up tables and chairs, lanterns. It's all here in the garage. You wanna take a look?"

"Sure." Jack said, rubbing his hands together. This was going to be perfect!

And perfect it was. He asked her for a price on everything and it was far less than he thought. He took it all and headed over to Andy's Sports Equipment store. He got the biggest ice chest he could find, hauled it up front and continued shopping. He got a shopping cart this time and came back with it full. He loaded everything up in the back of his truck and headed for Walmart.

He picked up eight large plastic storage containers with covers, hauled them out to the back seat of his truck. Then went back in and got two hundred dollars worth of groceries. Home again, in his garage, he began organizing things. Once he had all the canned and packaged goods packed in the storage containers, he stacked them in the back of his truck, four across and four on top, then secured them with bungee cords. Then came all his miscellaneous camping gear; last was the ice chest which he would fill in the morning just before leaving. He tied everything down and secured it with a nylon tarp covering everything.

Upstairs, he went through his room separating out his clothes. Those he wanted to keep fit easily enough into one small bag. The rest of his clothes, he loaded up in plastic bags and hauled down stairs and out to the back seat of his truck. Off to Goodwill to dump it all, and on the way home he spotted an area where several garage sales were going on. He thought he'd just drive through and see if he could spot anything they might need and came across one place with a few tools for sale. He got a rake, shovel, and an ax. The house next door didn't have much but they did have a carton of candles; mostly all had been used before, but there was a ton of them, and the entire box was only three dollars. The rest of the houses had nothing he needed so he headed on home.

He loaded up his saddle and suitcase in the back seat, then went back inside and came out with a set of luggage – brand new with the price tags still attached, two cameras, a pair of binoculars, and his jewelry box. His room was finished and he started on his study. There was very little he wanted there but he packed it up and threw everything else out. By the time he was finished Lureen arrived home from work. They had a quiet dinner and chatted as if everything was normal. Before she left the table, Lureen informed him that their meeting with the lawyer was for nine the next morning. Jack said he'd be ready.

He waited until he was sure Lureen was in her room for the night and called Ennis from his study.

"You all packed?" He asked when Ennis answered.

"I am." Ennis said. "I talked with the guy at the stables and told him that I'd be leavin, most likely during the night tomorrow. I'm paid up till the end of the month with him, so that's taken care of. I paid the office the three months back rent and told 'em I'd be leavin in the next couple a days. So that's taken care of. Tomorrow morning I'll head on over to the service station and get a tune-up. That should be about all I need."

"Sounds good." Jack said, finally beginning to believe that this was actually happening. "And what about you – do you feel well enough to make the drive? It'll be about a three and a half or four hour drive."

"I'm fine. Not runnin any temperature today. I think the worst of it is passed. Just have the nagging cough." Ennis assured him.

"Okay, good." Jack said.

"What about you, Bud. You gonna be up to a drive that long after you've just made a fourteen hour drive up from Texas?"

"Sure I will." Jack said. "If I'm too tired, we might rest up at your trailer a couple hours before we take off. Would that work for you?"

"You bet!" Ennis agreed. "This place ain't much, but it'd do to rest up a bit in."

"Great. We'll play it by ear then." Jack said. "If we both feel up to it, we'll take off when I get there. Otherwise, we rest up before we head out."

"Did you talk with your mom again; tell her we were comin? Did she talk with your dad about it?"

"Yes, to both a those questions. Momma's thrilled to death and can hardly wait for us to get there."

"And your dad?" Ennis asked.

"About what I expected." Jack answered. "Already layin down the law about what we can and can't do, what we can and can't use, a lot a bull shit like that."

"He is what he is, I suppose." Ennis said. "If you're not worried about it; I guess I shouldn't be."

"That's right." Jack said relieved by Ennis' attitude. "Just keep in mind he's a nasty minded old man with a mouth on him like a snake. He'll lash out at you every chance he gets. That's just his way. Don't take it personally – he's like that with everyone."

"Well, sticks and stones, I guess." Ennis said. "I ain't afraid a words. Long as he don't go shootin his mouth off in town; tellin people our business."

"You won't have to worry about that. He don't want no one knowin private family business. He ain't the type to sit around and chit-chat with friends about stuff."

"Then we shouldn't have no problem." Ennis agreed.

"All right. I'm gonna hit the hay now and get some sleep. I wanna be up early in the morning and get everythin set so I can leave as soon as the meetin with the lawyer is finished."

"Okay. See you tomorrow evenin then." Ennis said.

"Tomorrow." Jack said and hung up.

"Now are you sure you understand this agreement you're signing?" The attorney asked Jack.

"Positive. It's short and sweet; just the way I like legal papers. Everything gets put back in Lureen's name and I get a tractor and a trailer; along with my personal possessions. Isn't that about it?"

"Yes sir. With the stipulation that this will be the final resolution of all properties co-owned by the two of you. You will have no recourse if you should change your mind at a later date." The lawyer explained.

"I understand." Jack said and signed the papers. "Is there anythin else I need to sign?"

"No; not at the moment." The lawyer said as he took the signed document. "The divorce papers won't be ready for another few days."

"I gave him your folks P.O. box number up in Lightnin Flat." Lureen said. "He'll send you the papers when they're ready. All you'll need to do is sign them and send them back."

"I won't have to appear in court for the hearing?" Jack asked.

"No; not as long as you sign the papers agreein to everythin." Lureen said.

"Okay." Jack was happy to let it go at that. "I'm gonna take off then. I got a long drive ahead a me."

He gave Lureen a quick peck on the cheek and left.

Jack sang along with the radio as he drove. He refused to think about the other time he made such a trip, thinking he and Ennis would be starting off on a life together. That was a bad time for him. He shoved the thoughts from him mind. This time was different. This time Ennis was waiting for him and they were going to have their dream. A place together, a cabin in the woods. He could hardly wait.

It was a long day but every mile away from Texas took him a mile closer to Ennis. He couldn't stop grinning. How could life be so bleak and lonely one day and be so brilliantly beautiful the next, he wondered. He had been so miserable just a few days back. And now the world was his!

It was shortly after two a.m. when he pulled into the trailer park. Ennis was sitting on his front steps smoking a cigarette.

"What are you doing out here in the cold night air!" Jack greeted him. "You should be inside where it's warm."

"What do you think I'm doin out here?" Ennis grinned and gave him a quick hug. "Jeez, you really did get a tractor." He said glancing at the trailer in the dark.

"I did." Jack said proudly. "Are you wantin to leave this minute or can we go inside and rest up a bit?"

"Come on in." Ennis said and headed for the door. "Though I got a say, I'm not up to much past restin."

He added in a low voice and they went inside.

"Don't worry. That's about all I have the energy for... at least for now." Jack said with a lecherous grin.

"Tired?" Ennis asked.

"Uh huh." Jack said as he removed his hat and tossed it on the table. "You get any sleep or have you been waitin up?"

"I slept a little this afternoon." Ennis said.

"So... you ready to ditch this place?" Jack grinned.

"I'm ready whenever you are." Ennis said.

"Okay. Here's what I was thinkin." Jack said. "We can stay here and rest up a couple hours, or we could head out to that Boyson state park. It's only about twenty miles from here. We could set up the tent and grab a few hours sleep. What do you think?"

"I think we should sleep here and head out when we're both rested up some." Ennis said.

"You think it's safe?" Jack asked. "I mean I'd hate to lose anythin out a the back a my truck or my trailer. I got no way a lockin it up."

"Hmmm. I see what you mean." Ennis said. "You think the campground would be any safer?"

"I don't know. Has this park had any trouble with people stealin stuff?"Jack asked.

"Not that I heard of." Ennis said. "Maybe we should head on over to the park. They got those Park Rangers drivin through all the time keepin an eye on things. It'd probably be safer. Up to you, Bud. You're the one been drivin all day."

"Let's do it. You sure you won't mind sleepin out? How's your cold?" Jack asked.

"Not that bad; and it ain't all that cold out." Ennis said. "We get ourselves into those sleepin bags and I doubt we'll even feel it."

"I'll keep you warm." Jack said with a sly grin. "That's a solid promise."

"Okay. Let's go." Ennis grinned as they loaded up the last of his gear in the back of his pickup and headed out; Ennis leading the way over to where his horses were stabled. In no time flat, they had the trailer hitched behind Ennis' truck and the horses loaded.

"Ready?" Jack asked. When he got a grin and a grunt from Ennis he followed up with, "Follow me then."

In less than an hour they were at the campgrounds. Jack was setting up his small camping tent while Ennis secured the horses close by, got them some water, and settled them in. Inside the tent Jack had the sleeping bags open and ready when Ennis came in, zipping the door closed behind him.

"How long you wanna sleep?" Ennis asked. "I got my alarm clock out in the truck if you think we need to set it."

"Nah." Jack shook his head as he pulled his boots off and stretched his tired back. "It don't matter how late we sleep. We got no schedules to keep; no bosses to report to. Let's just get a good night's sleep and have a nice breakfast in the mornin. It'll make the trip a lot easier if we don't show up all worn out."

"Good idea." Ennis agreed as he climbed under the covers. He was filled with a mixture of dread and excitement. Dread at meeting Jack's dad; but excited at the prospect of working with Jack full time.

"Ohhh I'm glad we decided on this." Jack said as spooned up behind Ennis.

"Me too." Ennis yawned. "You wake me up now if you wake up before me."

"I will." Jack said with a sigh as he snuggled in closer. In very few moments they were both sound asleep.

CHAPTER TWO

The next morning they arrived at the Twist ranch mid morning. Jack stopped just before the driveway and walked back to talk with Ennis who had pulled up behind him. "All set?" he asked.

"Guess so." Ennis said nervously as he gripped the steering wheel.

"Best to get the worst over with right off." Jack said. "We meet the folks and get that over with then we can get on with things."

"Okay." Ennis said steeling himself for the worst.

"It won't be all that bad." Jack said, lighting a cigarette, taking a few puffs and handing it to Ennis. "Mom is a sweetheart; and Dad... well, he's Dad. He's mean natured, nasty mouthed, and ignorant as they come. I'll just introduce everyone, and we'll take off. Momma will want us to come in for coffee but I'll tell her we need to get on out back and get set up. She'll understand. And Dad, whatever he says, we'll just shake it off. It don't matter none what he says or does. Remember that. This ranch is every bit as much mine as it is his."

"All right." Ennis said, handing the cigarette back to Jack who took another long drag before dropping it to the ground and stepping on it. "Let's get this over with."

They drove up the driveway and stopped at the house. Mrs. Twist came out, grinning from ear to ear. She grabbed Jack and the two of them hugged mightily with Mrs. Twist squealing as Jack lifted her up off the ground. Jack nodded to Ennis and he walked over. Jack introduced him.

"I'm so glad to finally meet you, Ennis." She said taking his out stretched hand in both of hers. "Jackie has talked so much about you I already feel like we're old friends."

"Nice to meet you too." Ennis said retrieving his hand.

"So _that's_ this Ennis del Mar you been talkin about all these years? Huh!" Mr. Twist came out the back door letting it slam behind him. He stared at Ennis, looking him over. "You ain't what I expected."

"Nice to meet you." Ennis said and reached out a hand for a shake.

Mr. Twist ignored the hand and stood with hands on hips. "We got rules around here. You follow 'em or you leave. You don't touch my barn or anythin in it. Not my tractor, my baler, my tools – nothin. You got that?"

"We got our own tractor, Dad." Jack said and nodded towards his trailer.

"Where'd you get that thing?" Mr. Twist asked walking over and taking a look at the new John Deere now covered with road dust. "You steal it? I ain't lyin to the cops if they come lookin for you!"

"I didn't steal it, Dad. I got it in the divorce settlement." Jack said. "And we'll be getting our own tools too. There'll be no need to borrow yours." Jack said.

"Yeah, well see that you don't! And don't think you'll be takin your meals with us either, cause you ain't!"

"Don't worry about it. We've got our own food." Jack said.

"Why don't we go inside and have a cup of coffee." Mrs. Twist said sweetly. "I baked some of your favorite molasses cookies, Jackie."

"Thanks, Momma; but not right now. We just wanna get on out back and get set up." Jack gave her another hug.

"Oh, of course you do." She gave him an adoring smile. "You need anythin at all son, you just let me know."

"If they need anythin they can get it themselves! This ain't no Goodwill store." Mr. Twist said; then added before heading back into the house he added, "And you keep them horses away from my herd. I don't want 'em catchin no diseases."

"We'll see you later, Momma." Jack gave her hand a squeeze and headed for his truck.

Ennis nodded to Mrs. Twist, "Ma-am" he tipped his hat and followed, glad to be away.

Across the ranch they drove on the small roads between pastures; past overgrown fields of weeds and brush; broken down fences everywhere, and some places the fencing was missing altogether. When they came to a large stand of trees, Jack stopped.

Ennis stopped behind him, looking around in all directions, straining to see as much as he could see.

"C'mon." Jack said as Ennis got out of his truck. "I wanna show you somethin."

They took off into the woods walking for about five minutes before they came to a large clearing.

"Look at this." Jack said spreading his arms wide and turning around. "This is where I wanna build our cabin!"

Ennis took it all in and had to admit that is was a great spot. The ground was nice and level there. Plenty of sunshine made its way in, enough for lot of field grass to be covering the area. A good sized cabin could fit there easily enough, even the extra rooms he planned for the next year or two.

"What do you think?" Jack asked anxiously.

"I think you're right." Ennis grinned at Jack's enthusiasm. "This looks like the perfect spot to me. Lots a privacy."

"That's what I thought." Jack was bursting with happiness. "C'mon; let's unload. I can't wait for you to see our new setup."

"All right; but I wanna get the horses out first. They been stuck in that trailer long enough." Ennis said as he looked around for the best spot to secure them. "Where's the closest water? They're gonna be thirsty."

"In the back a my truck." Jack said with a proud smile. "You got a waterin pan for 'em?"

"I do." Ennis said as he unloaded the horses and walked them over to a nearby tree where he tied them. He got their watering pans from his truck and Jack brought out an eight-gallon water jug, walked over to the horses and filled the pans.

"We can fix somethin better for them after we get settled in." Jack promised as they walked back over to his pickup.

"What is all this stuff, Jack?" Ennis asked as Jack rolled back the tarp covering the back end of his truck.

"All kinds a good stuff, Cowboy." Jack said as he climbed up in and began loosening all the ropes. "The other day while I was waiting for my truck to be serviced, I was readin the paper and found an ad for a three-room tent. Immediately I knew we had to have it so I went over to take a look at it after they got finished with my truck. The lady sellin it had it set up in her backyard and I knew it'd be just perfect." He tossed Ennis the box holding the tent. He got a double armful of stuff himself and jumped down, heading for the woods. Some time later after dealing with a sea of green nylon, tent poles, stakes and ropes, the tent was up.

"Wow!" Ennis said. "I never expected anythin like this, Jack. It's huge. You can walk around inside and everythin!"

"Center room is ten by ten, smaller rooms on the side are six by ten. But this isn't all!" Jack said and tossed Ennis another armful of green nylon and netting.

"What's this? Another tent?" Ennis asked.

"Nope." Jack grinned. "It's what they call an add on room. See across the front of the tent, the zipper there?"

Ennis took a look up at the top, above the doorway and spotted it.

"This end right here," Jack said wrestling with the bundle. "zips right there." The two of them worked at it and got it zipped and the rest of the room took shape. "This room has no floor so it's perfect for a kitchen. It's ten by ten, same as the main room inside. It's got a solid nylon roof, but the walls are net so we can cook in it without havin to worry none about fumes. And see these rolls up on top?"

Ennis looked up and saw rolls of nylon strapped up at the top of the extra room. "What's that for?"

"If it gets too windy, or it rains, or whatever – these unroll and you can zipper them down and the room will be enclosed. There's one over the door too."

"So it really is an extra room." Ennis said, nodding his approval.

"That's right." Jack said. "C'mon. Let's get the rest of our stuff."

In less than an hour they had their camp set up. Grocery containers were stacked across the back of the main room where a two-foot by four-foot camp table was set up with a lawn chair on either side. The small room off to the right was set up as a bathroom with a porta-potty sitting on a small home-made platform to bring it up to normal height. The platform had a drawer underneath to store tissue paper. Another camp table was set up with a eight-gallon water jug with a spigot next to a large bowl where they could wash up, brush their teeth, or shave. The other small room, to the left of the main room, was set up as their bedroom with two air mattress that they blew up with the help of a battery operated pump. In the screened room, camp tables were set up on either side of the door to the main tent room. One held their two camp stoves and another eight-gallon water jug with a spigot. The other table held their huge ice chest. A few more lawn chairs sat outside.

"Jesus, Jack." Ennis exclaimed when they finished piling all their stuff inside. "I never seen a tent this big."

"Well," Jack said as he sat in a lawn chair and stretched his long legs out in front of him and lit a cigarette. "We needed somethin comfortable if we're gonna stay in it until we get our cabin built. I sure as heck don't wanna stay with the folks, and I don't wanna spend a couple months in that little camp tent. I figured we could use that to store stuff in. Tools, buildin supplies, stuff like that."

"It's gonna be great havin a tent big enough to walk around in." Ennis agreed taking a seat beside Jack and lighting up himself.

"What do you say we fix ourselves some lunch; I'm starvin." Jack said after they sat and rested a few minutes. "How about a ham and cheese sandwich?"

"You got the makins in that ice chest a yours? Talk about huge – and heavy! What all you got in that thing anyway. Felt like we was carryin a load a bricks between us when we carried that thing in. You sure that camp table will hold it?"

"It'll hold it. I checked. Those tables look flimsy, but they're strong enough." Jack assured him. "Come see what I brought."

Jack lifted the lid and Ennis caught his breath. "Roast beef, ham, chicken, hamburger, hot dogs, sausage, bacon, lunch meat, milk, orange juice, cheese, butter, eggs. "Jack! All that stuff'll go bad soon as the ice melts and it's more than half gone already. Or do you plan on drivin fifty miles into town every day to get more ice?"

"Nope." Jack grinned as he pulled out the sliced ham, cheese, and mustard. "I talked with Momma when I knew for sure we'd be comin, told her I'd be getting the biggest ice chest I could find and that I'd be needin some big chunks of ice. I asked her if she could start freezin some for us. She said sure enough, so we're gonna have all the ice we need. Alls we have to do is go up to the house and get it. I can do that easy enough."

Ennis got a pot of coffee going while Jack put their sandwiches together. They were just finishing up their meal when they heard the honking.

"Hello in the camp!" Mrs. Twist voice called out. "Hello, Jackie, Ennis. It's me!"

Jack got up from the table and went to meet her while Ennis cleared away their lunch debris.

"Hey Momma." Jack came out of the trees and greeted her.

"Honey, I know the two a you are busy, but I thought you might be needin the ice, so I brought some." She handed the small Styrofoam ice chest to him. "And I brought some cookies. Thought you might need a little somethin to snack on while you're settin up."

"Thanks, Momma." Jack said and gave her a peck on the cheek. "Our ice is about gone. Come on, I want you to see our setup."

"Oh my goodness, Jackie! This is wonderful! Just wonderful!" Mrs. Twist marveled as Jack showed her through their campsite after putting the ice she brought in their ice chest. "You said you had a nice tent and stuff, but I never imagined anything like this."

"Well, building a cabin is gonna take some time, Momma, and we'll need at least a little comfort."

"And it's actually going to be a real log cabin? Made out of trees?" Mrs. Twist asked Ennis.

"That's the plan." Ennis answered as the three of them took seats at the table and started in on the cookies and coffee. "IF we can find enough trees, and IF we can come up with the tools we'll need."

"Oh; that reminds me." Mrs. Twist said after taking a sip of her coffee. "The _main_ reason I come visitin was to tell you about Sale Day."

"I remember you talkin about Sale Day before." Jack said. "Isn't that when your church friends get together and have a rummage sale?"

"Oh honey, it's much bigger than that now. It's not just my church – it's every church in town – and everyone else in town too." Mrs. Twist said. "It started out just a couple of the churches got together and had their sales on the same day. It was nice, but nothin special. Then it grew to all the churches in town doin it on the same day. Then it became special. Then the rest of the town decided to get in on it and everyone has yard sales on the same day. Now it's somethin spectacular!"

"The entire town?" Ennis asked.

"That's right." Mrs. Twist said. "It's set up so that items inside the church buildings have a set price on them. You can't bargain them down; those prices are firm. All proceeds from those sales go directly to the church fund to help the poor. Parking lots all over town will be filled with people selling their own items, and those places can all be bargained with, and of course, those people keep that money; just like anyone havin their own private sales. It's so much fun! Parking is a nightmare because just about every parking lot in town will be filled with sales goin on. And some of the stuff is new merchandise that for some reason or other just didn't sell. Last year I got a brand new flannel shirt for your father, Jackie; it just had one small place in the seam where the stitching came loose. I got it for two dollars. It didn't take me but a minute to sew up that seam, and he ended up with a brand new shirt. The year before, I got him some new long-johns for next to nothin because there was a small ink stain on 'em. Who cares about a little ink stain on somethin no body's ever gonna see? Besides which, the stain came mostly out after a few washins with bleach."

"It sounds interestin." Jack said as he devoured his third cookie.

"Oh, it's more than interestin; Jackie." Mrs. Twist said. "I'll bet you dollars to donuts that you'll be able to find you some tools there at a real good price, and building materials too!"

"Buildin materials?" Ennis' interest perked up. He wasn't interested in clothes, but building materials and tools were somethin else again.

"Yes!" Mrs. Twist said, her enthusiasm beginning to reach them. "There are a couple construction companies in town and every year they show up with a bunch of stuff. Some of it's left overs from jobs they worked, some of it's salvaged materials from re-modelin jobs. No tellin what you could pick up for your cabin, like maybe doors, or windows."

"Now you've got my interest, Momma." Jack said. "I thought you were talkin mainly clothes here."

"Oh no, honey." She answered. "Sure enough, there is always a ton of clothes; but there's every other item that you might find at a rummage or a yard sale. Some people even do crafts and sell them; there will be home canned goods, baked goods, as well as firewood, and every kind of household goods you can imagine. And all of it at rock bottom prices!"

"What do you think?" Jack asked Ennis.

"I think we're gonna be spendin some time in Gillette tomorrow." Ennis said with a slow grin.

"It's an all day thing; truly one of those 'shop till you drop' days." Mrs. Twist said. "It lasts three days and I always try to go all three days. The first day's the best for selection – there will be everything there you can possibly imagine. And the last day is best for prices. Everyone just wants to get rid of stuff and sometimes you'll get stuff free then because people don't want to pack it up and take it back home."

"So day two ain't worth goin?" Jack asked.

"Oh yes it is, because lots of times, you can't hit it all on the first day, and you can see what you missed second day 'cause a bunch a stuff will already be sold. Also, some people can't make it first day, and don't show up with their stuff to sell until second day. So all three days are certainly worth the trip."

"What time does it open?" Ennis asked.

"It officially starts at nine; but people get there and start settin up even earlier. We usually leave here about seven; right after breakfast. It's a nice forty-five minute drive, and there are places all over town sellin coffee, donuts, sodas, hot dogs, all sorts of stuff to eat. The town square will be filled with picnic tables and benches to sit and eat or rest. The construction companies bring in those portable toilets and have them set up all over town."

"It does sound great, Momma." Jack agreed.

"Oh it is, Son, it is! And you'll wanna get there as early as possible so you'll be able to find a place to park. We usually look for a place as close to the center of town as possible. Those spots will be gone in no time. Once you get a good parking spot; don't leave it because you'll never find another one."

"You ready for bed?" Jack asked as they finished cleaning the supper dishes. "It's been a long day."

"I am." Ennis said, stretching after a coughing spell. "That sleepin bag is gonna feel mighty good on top a those air mattresses."

"I got some stuff for you." Jack said pulling out a plastic shopping bag. "I know you said you got some cough medicine but I got this for you. It's supposed to be the best." He pulled out a bottle of cough medicine. "And I got some Vicks. Nothin's better for a cold than this." He held up the small blue jar.

"You got me Vicks?" Ennis asked, pleased as he could be. "My mother used to put this stuff on me when I had a sore throat."

"I know your throat's hurtin. I can tell. You're hoarse, and you're strugglin to clear it all the time." Jack said as they turned the light off in the middle room and opened their sleeping bags in their little side room.

"It does some." Ennis admitted. "Cold's almost gone though."

"I'll smear some a that stuff all over your throat and chest." Jack offered. "With us sleepin out, we need to do everythin we can to get you well as soon as possible. We can't take no chances."

"I can do it, Jack." Ennis protested. "You don't have to baby me."

"Have to? _Have to?_" Jack asked as he sat down beside Ennis who was busy pulling off his boots. "I finally get you up here in my favorite place in the whole world after twenty years a tryin – I'm gonna baby you! So get used to it."

Ennis removed his shirt and t-shirt and lay back. "Okay, Bud. You win this one." He grinned.

"You got a sweat shirt or pajamas or somethin? You ain't sleepin without a shirt a some kind on." Jack said as he opened the jar and began rubbing the Vicks in.

"Got a sweatshirt in my bag." Ennis said as he sighed from the pleasure of it all. It was hard to believe that just a few days ago he was in the pits of despair.

"Here." Jack said after rummaging through Ennis' bag and pulling out the sweatshirt. "Put this on." He covered Ennis up, removed his own boots and climbed in beside him. "I'll keep you nice and warm so you don't take a chill." He said and wrapped his arms around Ennis. They were asleep in minutes.

"Ugh, I gotta wash this stuff off a me." Ennis grunted the next morning when they woke up to a tent smelling strongly of Vicks.

"Good idea." Jack agreed. "We can put some more back on tonight."

"Jesus, Jack!" Ennis exclaimed as they drove into town. "Your momma wasn't kiddin. This place is packed and it ain't even close to nine yet."

The town was full of people setting up little stands, putting up signs, hustling food as well as their merchandise. They finally found a parking space at the far side of the town square. Tables were going up everywhere and were being stacked with goods of all descriptions.

"That's her church over there." Jack pointed across the square. "That's where she said the construction company sets up."

"Sounds good." Ennis agreed as they made their way through the already gathering crowd of people milling around.

"Construction stuff would probably be out back in the parking lot." Jack said. "I doubt they'd take that kind a stuff inside."

"True enough." Ennis agreed walking beside him around the side of the church, past the cotton candy making machine, and the clown making balloon animals for a group of squealing kids.

"Back there's some trucks." Jack said and pointed towards the very back of the parking lot.

"Isn't that your Momma?" Ennis said.

"Where?" Jack said as he scooted around a group of teenagers with their radios blaring.

"Over there by that blue truck." Ennis said as they met up again the other side of the noisy kids.

"Oh yeah." Jack said. "Come on."

The closer they got they were able to read the sign on the side of the truck. 'Elliot's Construction Company'.

"You got any idea what we'll need?" Jack asked as the walked.

"Some." Ennis said. "I worked up a bit of a plan. It won't be nothin big. Just a twelve by twelve room to start and we can add on later. The plan can always be altered though, depending on what we can find."

"Hey Momma." Jack greeted her as they arrived.

"Oh Jackie, Ennis! I'm so glad you got here early. This is Frank Elliot." Mrs. Twist introduced them.

"Frank this is my son Jackie, and Ennis del Mar."

"Pleased to meet you." They all said and shook hands.

"Frank has brought a lot of construction materials to sell but his men haven't shown up yet to help unload." Mrs. Twist explained.

"Isn't that the way things go?" Frank said with a laugh. "You give them the day off work to help out at the sale and they feel that means a day to sleep in." He was grousing, but in a good natured way.

"We'd be glad to give you a hand unloadin." Ennis offered.

"We're in the market for some construction materials ourselves." Jack added.

"Your mom was just tellin me that the two of you are building a cabin from scratch; that right?"

Frank asked as he raised the back door on his truck.

"Yes, sir." Ennis said with a nod and trying to get a look inside to see what was there.

Frank hopped up inside and started handing things down to both Jack and Ennis. "Well, take a look through this stuff. You see anythin you need, let me know and we'll set it aside; see that you get a good deal."

Twenty minutes later they had the truck unloaded and scattered around the ground. People were already coming over and going through it.

"See anythin you need?" Frank asked after talking to a few people about some of his items.

"Yeah." Ennis said. "Windows and doors. How much you askin for 'em?"

"How many do you need?" Frank asked.

"Four a these windows this size, and two doors." Ennis said.

"How about five bucks a piece?" Frank asked.

"You got a deal." Ennis said and pulled out his wallet.

"You ever build a cabin before?" Frank asked as he pocketed the bills.

"Nope." Ennis answered as he went through the windows, selecting the ones with the frames in the best shape. "I done some buildin before though, and we ain't aimin to build nothin fancy. Just one room for now."

"What kind a buildin you done?" Frank asked.

"Mostly, I'm just a ranch hand." Ennis explained. "But I built stuff like chicken coops, small out-buildins; and I helped when the ranch owner added on a couple a rooms to his home, so I got the general idea."

"He helped with buildin a stone fireplace too; so he's gonna do one for the cabin." Jack added.

"That's a pretty ambitious project you got goin there." Frank said. "What about plumbin and electrics? You got any experience with those?"

"Some." Ennis admitted. "We added a bedroom, bathroom, and family room to the ranch owners place. I helped with it all. I figure I can handle some a the basic stuff; but we won't be puttin in any electrics for a while."

"Hopefully when we get around to that, we'll have jobs and be able to afford to pay to have that put in." Jack said.

"What about you, Jack? You ever do any buildin?" Frank asked.

"Some." Jack said. "Mostly repair type work. We did a lot a repairs to the old barn, did some roof work on it. Work around the house, that kind a stuff."

"I don't suppose either a you can drive a truck and trailer or operate a fork lift?" Frank asked.

"Yeah." Ennis and Jack both said and shook their heads.

"I can operate a fork lift." Ennis said. "I worked one winter in the Sears warehouse in Riverton."

"And I can drive a truck and trailer." Jack said. "How big we talkin about here? I don't drive those big rigs, not the eighteen wheelers."

"No, I wasn't talkin anythin that big." Frank said.

"Well, I just drove my pickup from Texas pullin a forty-foot flat bed haulin my new tractor up here."

"No kiddin?" Frank grinned. "Well I can see why you're broke if you just bought one a those."

"Didn't buy it." Jack said. "Got it in a divorce settlement. The ex-wife owns a farm machinery business."

"Well congratulations!" Frank said. "I don't know how you managed to wrangle that, but I'd say you get the better end a that deal."

"You lookin to hire some help?" Ennis asked hopefully.

"I am, but it'd mostly likely be temporary and just part time. You interested?" Frank said.

"Sounds like just what we're lookin for." Jack said. "We wanna spend as much time as we can on the cabin and get somethin up before winter."

"What kind a work we talkin about here?" Ennis asked.

"Spring and summer is our busiest time of year, and I got two men out. My warehouse man took a fall and broke his hip. Doc says it'll be another six to eight weeks before he can come back to work. And my driver, he just found out that his wife's got cancer and they've moved temporarily to Minnesota where she can get treatment at some big hospital there. He's hopin to be back in a couple months, but that leaves me too men short durin my busiest time.

"I only need a long distance driver couple a times a month to go for supplies; and by long distance, I mean mostly to Casper, occasionally down to Cheyenne. And I'm talkin about a truck about this size, and maybe pullin a forty-foot trailer behind. And Ennis, we could really use a warehouse man. That'd be receivin goods, pullin product for job orders; the usual warehouse type stuff. And if you wanted to, we could always use helpers when we go out on a job. You think the two a you might be interested?"

"Yes sir!" Ennis answered and Jack agreed with a nod and a, "We sure are!"

"Good deal." Frank said. "The two of you come see me Monday mornin then and we'll put you to work."

Some people came over and were going through the windows, talked about them for a few minutes then left. "Listen," Frank said. "You plan on addin on rooms to this cabin a yours later on down the road?"

"Sure enough." Ennis nodded as he and Jack were figuring out how to carry everything back to their truck.

"Maybe you ought to think about getting the rest a these windows then. That way all your windows would match." Frank suggested.

"That's a good idea." Jack said and pulled out his wallet. "We get them at the same price – five dollars a piece? I noticed you quoted a higher price to those folks who were lookin at 'em."

"Well now, they didn't help me unload, did they? And besides that, they don't get the employee discount." Frank grinned.

"What we really need is tools." Ennis said.

"I don't have any for sale, but I saw some earlier goin in the church back door." Frank said. "You'd better hurry if you want 'em; stuff like tools go pretty fast."

"We gotta get all this stuff out to the truck first." Jack said as he started lifting windows.

"Tell you what;" Frank said. "Why don't you boys just stack your stuff back in my truck there. I'll keep an eye on it for you until you get back."

"Oh thank you, Frank." Mrs. Twist said and gave his arm a squeeze. "You're such a good man."

"You gonna be here for a while?" Ennis asked, a little leery about leaving things they had already paid for with a stranger.

"I'll be here all day." Frank assured them. "My wife is out there shoppin, somewhere; and I'm not givin up this parkin spot for nothin!"

"C'mon." Jack said after they loaded their things in the back of the truck, and he and Ennis turned towards the back of the church. "Let's see what we can find."

"We gotta be careful with the money, Jack." Ennis warned.

"We will be, but we need tools, Cowboy." Jack agreed. "We can't build a cabin without tools."

"What we need most is a chain saw." Ennis said. "Those are expensive to buy new."

They entered the building and found it filled with tables piled high with merchandise. They made their way past the clothing, dishes, toys, and over to a side table piled with tools of every description. There was already a crowd gathering, picking things up and looking at them, some carrying things away. Ennis spied a circular saw and was trying to make his way over to it, but it was picked up and taken off before they got to it. "Damn." Ennis said quietly to Jack. "We really need one a those."

Their attention was caught by a loud sound. Someone had started a chain saw. A man wearing a name tag with the name of the church on it, was holding it and demonstrating for a customer. By the time they got up to them, the guy was saying he was going to talk to his brother and he'd be back in a little while. "So that chain saw is sold then?" Ennis asked.

"Nope." The church man said. "He didn't say nothin to me about savin it for him. You interested in it?"

"We sure are! How much?" Jack said, reaching for his wallet.

"You know how to operate one a these?" Church man asked.

"Yep. Had lots a experience usin one." Ennis said.

"Me too." Jack added.

"Okay, price is marked on it." He showed the end of it so they could see the price. "Less than half what you'd pay in a store."

"We'll take it." Ennis and Jack said at the same time.

"Fine." Churchman said. "You pay up front as you leave." He said and handed it to Jack. "Have a look around. We've got lots a other tools. Guaranteed they all work. We try them out before hand, so they're all in workin order."

"What we really need is a circular saw." Ennis said. "We saw one, but it got took before we got to it."

"Did you see that bunch of power tools two tables over?" Churchman said. "I saw a couple of 'em over there."

"Thanks. We'll check it out." Ennis said as they headed over.

"Holy cow!" Jack said as he opened a Dewalt Combo Kit. "Look at this, Ennis!"

Ennis already had a circular saw in his hands, but came over to see what Jack had found. "What is it?"

"This kit looks brand new!" Jack enthused. "Somebody must a bought it and never used it. Don't look like any a these ever even been used."

"It is brand new, looks like." Ennis said as he admired the clean yellow and black tools packed neatly in the kit. "Bet they want a brand new price for it too."

"But we need all a this; don't we?" Jack asked as he looked over the circular saw, reciprocating saw, drills and battery packs. "Look, it's even got extra blades and drill bits."

"What're they askin for it?" Ennis said, looking for the price tag.

"Two fifty." Jack said as he caressed the new tools. "But they're worth every penny!"

"Whether they're worth it or not, Jack; two fifty is a lot of money." Ennis said as he backed away and started looking at other tools; glad that he had not put down the fifteen-dollar circular saw he'd been looking at. "Let's look around a little more. We might could find all those things a lot cheaper."

"All right." Jack agreed, but picked up the kit and carried it with them. When Ennis gave him the eye, he explained, "We might not find anythin else, and we need these."

They found no more power tools they could use, but they did find two eight foot step ladders, a pair of saw horses and a few hand tools: hammers, screw drivers, pliers, etc. Enough to get a nice tool kit going. When they had all they could carry, they headed out for the truck. They loaded everything in the back and covered it up with the tarp before heading back for their windows.

"Heck, we should a brought both trucks." Jack said later as they were loading the windows into his back seat.

"Nah; we're spendin too much money as it is, and we ain't even been here but a couple a hours." Ennis said as he hoisted a door up into the back of the truck.

"We didn't buy nothin we didn't need." Jack argued. "And we ain't looked anywhere but this one place."

"I wonder what kind a money we'll be makin with our new jobs?" Ennis wondered as Jack covered everything up.

"Don't know." Jack said, "But construction workers always make pretty good money. We'll have money comin in before long. Don't worry so much about the money. I got this covered, and still got plenty left."

"We still need to be careful, Jack."

"We will; we will." Jack promised as they headed back towards the crowds. "I don't suppose you'd be interested in grabbin a couple a those hot dogs?"

"They sure do smell good." Ennis grinned. "I don't suppose a couple a dogs could hurt us that much."

They left for home before noon, their truck packed full of odds and ends; a couple two-by-4s, some odd pieces of plywood, and a couple half-used bags of concrete mix. They were sure they couldn't cram in another thing when they left, but couldn't pass up an old wheel-barrow that someone had for sale on the side of the road, along with a bunch of other stuff. They also picked up a couple hoes, a pick ax, a sledge hammer and some other odd bits of lumber at the same place. All of that was tied on top. Carefully they made their way home.

"Wow!" Jack said as they were unloading. "I was hoping we'd find a few things we needed; I never figured we'd find this much."

"We got a lot a good stuff, Bud; but we need to sit down and talk some about money before we go spendin any more." Ennis said as the last bits were unloaded.

"We can do that over lunch." Jack said as they headed into their tent. "I think we should go right back after lunch and see what else we can find."

"Now, Jack; that's what I'm talkin about." Ennis said as he pulled the peanut butter and bread out while Jack made the coffee. "I ain't got but a little bit a that money left you sent me. I don't know how much you got, but we spent a whole lot already. Maybe we should wait until we start gettin some money comin in before we spend any more."

"But Sale Day will be gone by then, Cowboy." Jack argued as he pulled out his wallet. "I still got..." he counted his money. "Seven hundred, sixty four dollars. And I got sixty-five hundred in the bank in Childress. Soon as we got a minute, I wanna open us up an account and get that transferred up here."

"You sure half a that ain't Lureen's?" Ennis asked as they ate.

"Nope. That's all money I earned myself. She has her accounts and I have mine. All it'll take is a phone call to make the transfer." Jack assured him.

"Well, we best keep that money in reserve." Ennis said.

"Okay. But I still think we should go back after lunch and see what else we can find." Jack said.

"You normally carry a hundreds a dollars around with you, Jack?" Ennis asked.

"Nope." Jack said after a sip of coffee. "I was gonna tell you – I made a couple a stops in Denver on the way up."

"Jack, you didn't borrow money; did you?" Ennis was appalled.

"No; I didn't." Jack said, seeing the look on Ennis' face. "I stopped at a pawn shop and sold some stuff; and I also stopped at a jewelry store that I know takes stuff on consignment."

"What's that mean?" Ennis asked.

"It means they sell stuff for people and they get to keep some a the money, the rest goes to the owner. Lureen was forever buyin me jewelry that I never wore except for whatever shindig we ended up goin to. I had a bunch a gold and silver rings and some other jewelry. I took all that to the jewelry store. When he sells it, we'll be gettin a check in the mail. Over at the pawn shop, I took some fancy designer luggage that Lureen bought me one year when she was tryin to talk me into takin some cruise. I never went. She did – with her friends. Anyway, I took in the luggage, two cameras, and a pair of binoculars and he give me eighteen hundred for the lot."

"Jesus, Jack. I hate that you had to sell all your stuff."

"I didn't use none of it. Maybe the binoculars a couple a times. I was glad to be rid of it all, Cowboy. I'd trade it any day for stuff we need to build our cabin." Jack assured him.

"Well..." Ennis said as he finished his coffee and sandwiches. "I guess we'd best be on our way back to Gillette then. I'd hate to lose out on any buildin stuff that we might could find."

Jack's face split with a grin. "Right! And maybe we could hit one a those donut places again too."

Ennis grinned. "I guess it wouldn't hurt. They sure were good, and we do need to keep up our strength."

They hit the sales all three days and came away with a mixed assortment of building supplies and farm equipment; and a few clothes that they couldn't pass up when Ennis spotted a rack of jeans on sale for two dollars each.

Monday morning they were at Elliot's Construction Company first thing. They filled out all the paper work and got on with their day. There were no deliveries to be made or stock to pick up so Jack was assigned to help Ennis in the warehouse pulling job supplies. On their lunch hour they headed over to the bank to set up their account, and then over to the post office for a PO box, eating their sandwiches as they drove. The afternoon went as well as the morning and both were pleased with the work; as was Frank Elliot their boss.

Their work day ended at four o'clock which pleased them. It left them a couple of hours of daylight to get things organized and start on their cabin. While Jack used his new tractor and scraped the area clean; Ennis improvised a rope corral for the horses.

"You plan on us usin these trees here for the cabin?" Ennis asked.

"I'd kind a like all these trees to stay right where they are. I was thinkin more a those trees over there." He said pointing towards the east side of their area. "I know there won't be enough; but I thought that would give us a start. Then there are trees next place over." He turned back to the west again. "The Miller's used to live there. Andy Miller and I used to hang out; we went to grade school together and our mothers used to take turns drivin us. He passed away – when we were in, fifth grade, I think it was. That's when they up and left, and put the place up for sale. Couple years after, their place caught fire and burnt to the ground. There ain't nothin left of it 'cept the land. And that land has lots a trees on it. I'm sure no body would mind if we took some. I doubt anybody's even been out to look at the place. Nobody wants a place without a house."

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to take a look." Ennis said. "I'd like to find as many as we can with about a six inch diameter."

"Got lots a those around." Jack said. "And momma says we can take what's on the center section too. There's probably another fifteen – twenty trees there."

"I been thinkin," Ennis said. "Maybe if we advertised, we might could find someone who needs a field cleared. We could make a few bucks clearin it for 'em, and get us some trees that way. If we can't use 'em for the cabin, we could use 'em for firewood."

"That's a great idea!" Jack enthused. "Better than advertisin in the paper – we could make up some notices and put them around town at the post office, grocery store, hardware store. Lots a places have bulletin boards where you can put stuff like that up. And it don't cost nothin."

"Good, good." Ennis agreed. "We got us a good chain saw now. Wish we had us a log splitter. Them things save a world a time."

"Yeah." Jack agreed. "We used to have one, but it broke. That's what Dad always has me do when I come up for a visit. 'Firewood, Jackie.' He always says when I come up. He leaves that job to me."

"He still got that splitter? It'd be worth spendin a few bucks to get it fixed." Ennis said.

"Probably. He don't throw nothin away." Jack said. "Last time I saw it, it was covered in dust and cob webs under his old work bench in the barn. Don't think it can be fixed though. It rusted out, and one a the support legs broke."

"Them things are made a steel, Jack. A broken leg could be welded back on. You think he kept both parts?"

"Don't know. But it wouldn't hurt to ask him." Jack said. "If I do that though; first thing he's gonna ask is when I'm gonna get started on some fire wood for 'em."

"We can do that." Ennis said. "Tell 'em we'll cut him some wood, and ask about the splitter. All the work we got ahead a us – we'll save a lot a time if we don't have to split firewood for both them and us if we can get that splitter repaired."

"Okay. Let's go." Jack said and they drove up front to the house.

"You ain't invited for dinner." The old man sitting at the table with a cup of coffee greeting them as they entered the kitchen.

"Not here for dinner, Dad." Jack said as he took a seat at the table and motioned for Ennis to do the same. "Came to talk about firewood and that old log splitter."

"That's been busted for years." The old man said.

"I know, but it was just a leg that rusted up and broke off." Jack said. "We was thinkin that maybe we could take it in and get it fixed."

"Ain't nobody can fix a broken off leg. It's steel. You can't exactly tape it back on."

"You still got both parts?" Ennis asked.

"Hell, I don't know." The old man said.

"Well, we want to get you some firewood goin, and we need some for ourselves. Would you mind if we took a look in the barn and see if maybe we can get it fixed?" Jack asked.

Mr. Twist got up from the table and walked out the door with Jack and Ennis following him.

"There it is." He pointed under his work bench. "It ain't nothin but a rusted up hunk a junk."

Jack and Ennis bent down and started digging it out of the accumulated dirt it was partially buried in.

"You're probably right." Jack said as they got the rusted hulk out.

"Course I am. If you're getting a load a stuff ready for the dump, you may as well take it along with you. It ain't doin nothin but taken up space I could be usin for other things." The old man said.

"We'll take it." Ennis said. "You don't know where the leg is?"

"Nope. Don't have no idea. It come off years ago." The old man said walking out of the barn and waiting on the two of them to follow him out before closing the door behind them. Without another word, he stalked back into the house.

"It's a useless hunk a junk." Jack shook his head as they loaded it into the back of the truck.

"Maybe – maybe not." Ennis said as he climbed into the cab beside Jack. "You know that new drill we got? It's got a sander attachment with a wire wheel for metal."

"You think you can sand all that rust and gunk off?" Jack said.

"I think it's worth a try." Ennis said. "Those splitters don't come cheap. It'll take some work, for sure, but if we can fix it – we'd save ourselves a lot of work."

"What about the missing leg?" Jack asked.

"That's just a hunk a steel, Jack. Any welder worth his salt will have some layin around somewhere. I can't imagine it would be too difficult to fashion a leg and weld it on."

"I wonder if Mr. Elliot has a welder?"

"We can ask him tomorrow." Ennis said. "We got some daylight left. Let's see if we can clean that thing up."

"You really think it can be salvaged?" Jack asked.

"I'm sure it'll need some new parts; but that would be a lot cheaper than buyin one new." Ennis said as they unloaded it and set it up on their make-shift work bench; a piece of plywood over their saw horses.

"How much you think one a these things cost new?" Jack asked, not looking forward to putting too much work into the rusted hulk before them.

"I don't know." Ennis answered as he scraped as much of the dirt off as he could. "Probably a couple a hundred. But if we can get this one cleaned up – we might only need about fifty in parts and we'd have us a real time saver."

"Not just time, but energy as well." Jack admitted. "Choppin wood takes a lot a energy. Energy that we could be spendin on other activities." He gave Ennis a lecherous grin.

"Oh, we'll have enough energy left for that." Ennis said returning Jack's grin. "Don't matter if we get this thing workin or not; we'll make sure to save enough energy for that."

"I got a good feelin about this, Jack." Ennis said later as they were eating dinner. "We only been here a few days and look at all we got done already. We both got jobs, and jobs where we work at the same place so we can save money drivin in together. We got us a bunch a tools and stuff; and you know, your Dad give me another idea. You know where the county dump is?"

"Yeah. It's about five miles this side a Gillette. Why? You givin up on the splitter already?"

"No." Ennis grinned. "I was thinkin – we should stop there tomorrow on the way home from work and have a look around. No tellin what we might find. People are always throwin good stuff out. We might be able to find somethin we can use. Like maybe some fencin, or pieces a wood."

"All right." Jack said agreeably. "Can't hurt to take a look."

The next day after work, a stop at the dump brought them a pickup load of items. Mostly scrap pieces of wood, but they did find a couple of big rolls of used fence wire. A lot of it was too far gone to use, but between the two rolls, they came up with enough to make a small corral for the horses.

"What are you gonna do with all those pieces a plywood." Jack asked when they loaded the back of their pickup. "Aren't they too far gone to use in the cabin?"

"We can cut these into strips and use 'em to make an edge so we can pour concrete for our foundation."

"Oh." Jack said. "That's a good idea. I never laid concrete before. Have you?"

"Yeah." Ennis answered, tossing in the fence wire. "It ain't all that hard. Just messy."

"I ain't afraid a messy, Cowboy. We got the tools we need?" Jack asked.

"We do." Ennis answered as he climbed in behind the wheel while Jack climbed in on the passenger side. "Wheelbarrow and shovels. We're gonna have to spring for the concrete mix and a level. I was sure hopin to find one a those used. We didn't so we gotta buy one. We can't build nothin without a level. I figured we'd get one along with the concrete mix with our first paychecks; unless you got somethin else you're plannin on usin that money for?"

"Nah." Jack shook his head. "How much you figure we'll need?"

"Don't know for sure." Ennis said. "Bout... a hundred fifty bags, maybe two hundred. We can always use any extra for fence posts, so if we get too much it won't go to waste."

"You kiddin?" Jack asked.

"Nope." Ennis shook his head as he drove. "Them bags are small and heavy, and you need a ton of 'em. They cost about a buck fifty a bag. So we're lookin at in the neighborhood a three hundred. Mr. Elliot says he's gonna use us all week, so between the two a us, I figured we ought to make about that much; don't you think?"

"Yeah, I guess." Jack said. "I was just wonderin how we were goin to fit it all in. We'll have to make a couple a trips."

"That won't be no problem, Bud. We're in town every day for work." Ennis said.

"If we get to work full time next week too." Jack said.

"Mr. Elliot said he had a load comin in next Wednesday; so we should be good for at least one day's work. Hopefully, more. He seems like he likes the work we been doin for him. I like that we get to go out with the crew on some a their jobs. I wouldn't want to be cooped up in the warehouse all the time."

"Yeah." Jack agreed. "I liked that too. Especially the paintin. That makes the biggest improvement for the least amount a work."

"Uh huh." Ennis nodded. "Paintin's all right. I don't mind that at all. I was thinkin – we ought to put that on those ads we're makin up about the trees. Maybe we could get some business goin on the side. Handy man type things. What do you think?"

"It's a good idea." Jack agreed. "I think we should ask Mr. Elliot first though. It might put us in competition with him. We don't wanna do that."

"Sure enough. We'll ask him in the mornin." Ennis said. "I liked your mom's idea a usin index cards. We can get a lot a stuff printed on one a those."

"Yeah; and they should go up easy enough with just a stapler." Jack said. "I just hope that when anyone calls, Dad doesn't answer the phone. No tellin what he'd say."

"True enough." Ennis said. "Does he answer the phone much? I would think he'd be out a the house most a the time."

"He is." Jack said. "But if it was to ring as he walked by; he'd probably answer it."

"Well, as long as we keep puttin 'ask for Jack or Ennis' on each card; that's about all we can do." Ennis said. "I just hope he don't get mad at your momma for takin messages for us."

"He's always mad about somethin or other anyway. Can't see how momma takin a few messages for us could make him any madder."

"Maybe if we could get some firewood stocked up for him; he'd let up a little." Ennis reasoned.

"That's been my thinkin all my life, Ennis. I always thought if I could just do enough for him, he might not be so mad all the time. It don't work that way though. Not with him. If he ain't mad about one thing, he'll find somethin else to be mad about."

"That's a hell of a way for a boy to grow up." Ennis said reaching over and givin Jack's arm a squeeze.

"I'm used to it." Jack said, but the strain on his face belied that.

"We can get to work on that splitter tonight. Hopefully, we can get it up and runnin. Where do you normally go for firewood?" Ennis asked.

"The woods out back a our place." Jack said. "That's county land back there so we can't cut any a the trees, but any that have fallen we can take. We mostly just keep an eye out and if we see any trees down along side the road, we grab 'em."

"Sounds good." Ennis said as they pulled in to their campsite. "Quarter to five. Good, we still have a good hour, hour and a half, left a daylight. Let's unload and get to work on that splitter."

With a bit of water and a lot of scrubbing with a wire brush, they managed to get all the dirt off the splitter and some of the rust. Very carefully, and struggling with each piece, they took it apart.

"Where's that white distilled vinegar?" Ennis asked when they finished. "We need to soak all these parts."

"How about usin this bucket for the smaller parts?" Jack asked and sat it and the vinegar down.

"Good." Ennis said and dumped the two big bottles of vinegar into the pail. "We'll can stick as much of the base in as we can too; then tomorrow we'll turn it around and get the rest of it."

"Okay." Jack agreed. "Works for me. Are we through for the night then?"

"Nope." Ennis said as he propped the base in the bucket along with all the smaller parts. "Now we can start on the foundation. Get the tape measure and those little wooden spikes we found at the dump."

"I was wondering what those were for." Jack said later as Ennis hammered them down on the four corners twelve feet apart. That was all they got done before it became too dark to work.

"What's that?" Ennis asked later as he watched Jack pawing through a small cardboard box he didn't remember seeing before.

"Here." Jack said and shoved it over to Ennis as the two of them sat at the table waiting for their dinner to be ready.

"Seeds! Jack, this is great. Just about every kind a vegetable you could think of." Ennis exclaimed as he flipped through small packets that filled the box. "Where'd you get all these?"

"I forgot all about 'em." Jack explained. "I got 'em from the lady I got the tent from. She had 'em in her garage where the campin stuff was. She asked me if I saw anythin else I needed and I spotted this pile a seeds and asked about 'em. She said she was going to plant a garden, but wouldn't be doin that since they decided on movin into their son's place. I got the whole box for two dollars."

"That's a real good deal, Bud. We can use all a these. Well, most a them." Ennis grinned. "I don't care for cauliflower worth a damn; but we can plant if if you like it."

"No thanks." Jack shook his head. "I don't care for cauliflower either. Momma does though. I figured we'd give whatever we don't want to her."

"Good idea." Ennis agreed. "When we get some time we'll pick us out a spot that gets lots a sun and set us up a garden. It should be warm enough to plant some a these in a few weeks. We'll have to come up with some fencing for it though."

"Is fencin very expensive?" Jack asked. "I never bought none new. All Dad ever did was patch what we got. Most a his fences are patches upon patches."

"Yeah, it's expensive, Bud; but it's worth every penny you gotta spend on 'em. Specially your perimeter fences. You use shitty fencin you run the risk a your cows gettin out – gettin lost, or hit by a truck, or get took. Your garden fencin, you need to use a woven wire fence, or you'll be feedin every critter in the county."

"Dad put up a fence around Momma's garden, but she says the rabbits still get in."

"Well, maybe we can help 'em with it later on – when we get our own garden situated." Ennis said.

"Maybe we should add that to our index card ads. We do fencin. It ain't all that hard to fence if you got the right equipment and know what you're doin. We might could end up with some used fencin that would be good enough to use."

"I don't think we're gonna be able to get all a that on one a those little cards." Jack grinned. "Maybe we should just put somethin that covers most everythin. Like maybe 'Handy Man work. Trees removed, fields cleared, ranch and farm work, paintin'. Stuff like that. Then add our names and phone number. Don't see how we can get much more in than that."

"Hmmm That sounds good." Ennis agreed and checking his watch added. "Dinner about ready?"

"Sure enough!" Jack said.

Next day after work they pulled the splitter parts out of the vinegar and were amazed at how much of the rust had already come off. The vinegar in the pail had turned a rusty brown color and the small metal parts came clean with a good brushing with a wire brush. They turned the base over and hoped for the same results for the other end the next day. It did.

"So you think if we spring for just these new parts here, that splitter will work?" Jack asked as they drove in to work.

"Don't see why it wouldn't." Ennis said as he drove. "First we check and see how much those parts are gonna cost us; and ask Mr. Elliot about the weldin. If all that comes to under a hundred dollars, we got us a splitter."

"Won't it just rust out again like it did before?" Jack asked.

"Before we put it all back together, we get us some a that rust-proof paint. We get a good finish on it, and it'll last us for years, Jack. Them things are made to last, but you gotta take care of 'em."

"All right. I'm convinced. I'm just wonderin what Dad'll think when he sees it all fixed up, in workin condition. He'll probably try to take it back."

"He can try." Ennis said. "But he ain't gettin it. He told us to take it to the dump. We done all the work fixin it; it's ours."

"Let's hope he sees it that way." Jack said.

"Don't matter how he sees it, Bud. That splitter is ours. And as long as we see to it that he has a nice supply a firewood come winter, I don't see he's got anythin to complain about."

"I agree." Jack said, but his heart was full of doubt.

CHAPTER THREE

Friday came and two really good things happened. Their first pay checks, they received three-hundred twenty-five dollars each after taxes and everything was taken out. Ennis was stunned. It was nearly three times what he'd been making at Cole's ranch. The other thing that happened was they had a nice long talk with Mr. Elliot. He had no objections at all with the two of them doing odd jobs on their off hours. He was more than pleased with their work and asked them to stay on full time until his other two workers made it back. They happily accepted. He also said for them to go ahead and talk with Bernie, their welder, and ask him about fixing the missing splitter leg. After a short discussion, it was decided that Bernie would do the welding for them in exchange for them paintin his kitchen. His wife had been after him to do it for some time, and he hated painting. It was set up for the next day, Saturday.

They finished the kitchen by noon, and came home with the welding job done. All they had to do now was to wait for their parts to come in. They spent the rest of the weekend working on their foundation. The new parts for the splitter arrived on Tuesday. It was an anxious ride home that day. They were dying to know if their thirty dollar investment in parts would pay off. It did. First time they tested it, it fired. Perfect! Now they wouldn't have to spend hours on end chopping wood. They took it all apart again and spray painted it.

The next few evenings after work, they spent scouring the woods out back for downed trees. On horseback they were able to drag what they found back to their campsite and chain saw them into eighteen inch thick rounds. They waited three days until the weekend for the paint to get good and set before they put the splitter back together and began. Two things happened then. In no time, they had a huge stack of firewood, and Mr. Twist came visitin.

"Where'd you get that thing?" He asked pointing to the splitter.

"It's the one you told us to take to the dump." Jack said. "We fixed it up and we got a whole lot a firewood cut. We were just fixin to load it up and bring it up to the house."

"That ain't my old splitter. You're lyin." The old man spat a mouthful of tobacco juice on the ground.

"Yes it is." Ennis said. "See here where we had a new leg welded on?"

The old man walked over and took a look, still shaking his head. "Still don't believe it." He said with a nasty sneer. "There's no way you could a got all that rust off."

"We took it all apart, soaked it in vinegar and took a wire brush to it." Jack said.

"Some a those parts are new." The old man peered closer.

"That's right." Ennis said. "We had to buy a few new parts, but the rest is what we salvaged from your old splitter."

"Then that thing's mine!" The old man said defiantly.

"Half yours, Dad. The rest is ours. So we figured to use it to cut us both all the firewood we'd need. This bunch here is yours. Next bunch is ours."

"That little bunch won't be near enough. We need a sight more than that, or do you plan on lettin your momma freeze come winter?"

"We got all summer long to cut wood, Dad. This is just a start. We'll see to it you have all the firewood you need."

"I want that entire west side a the house filled, shoulder high." He said then turned and walked back to his truck and left.

Jack stood staring at the ground with a disgusted look on his face.

"Bossy little bastard, ain't he?" Ennis shoulder bumped him, getting a grin from Jack.

"He sure is." Jack grinned, back to his happy nature again.

"Let's get this bunch loaded up and hauled up to the house." Ennis suggested. "Then we can go out and see if we can find some trees the size we need for our cabin. Now that we got the foundation poured, I'm anxious to get started."

"Let's do it!" Jack happily agreed.

They took down all the trees in their two pastures that were the size they wanted for the cabin; then started in on the trees in the center section.

"Whew!" Jack said as he wiped his brow on his sleeve. "That should be enough to get us a good start; ain't it?"

"It's a start, Jack. But we're gonna need many, many more than this." Ennis said as they had the horses drag the logs back to their campsite to be stripped and laid out to dry in the sun. Next came the pulling of the stumps.

"Man, I hate this part." Jack complained. "Can't we just leave 'em?"

"Nope. We do a job, we complete it." Ennis said. "And these stumps are small. They should come out easily enough. We just get a chain around 'em and pull 'em out with the truck."

"You think that'll work?" Jack asked.

"Sure. We have to drive a spike in on one side, hook the chain under it so it don't slip off, and give it a good slow pull." Ennis assured him. "That's one thing we have to remember if we get any offers to take down a tree. If it's a big old thing, they gotta handle the stumps themselves, or get someone else. Also, don't accept any tree offers if they're close to power lines, or up close to any buildings. That kinda tree removal takes an expert; and that ain't us."

"Okay. I'll remember to ask about all that if we take any calls for trees." Jack said. "I sure wish we'd get some calls though."

"Yeah." Ennis agreed. "At least we got full time work right now so we ain't hurtin. Come fall though, we won't have none comin in. That's when times will get tough."

"We got all summer to prepare for it." Jack, ever the optimist, offered. "We'll have our cabin up by then, we'll have a mountain a firewood to keep us warm, vegetables from our garden, and we can hunt then. Maybe we can work somethin out with Dad; half an elk for half a beef. Somethin like that."

"Jack, we got no place to keep half an elk." Ennis reminded him. "We can't keep meat longer than a week in that ice chest a ours."

"We gotta do somethin about that. I wanna talk with momma about the electric bill." Jack said. "What if we took over and paid it all summer – long as we have work, and they let us put a freezer down in the basement; then they pay the bill all winter, until we can find work again in the spring?"

"I don't know." Ennis said. "You think your dad would agree to somethin like that?"

"Can't say. Maybe if we sweeten the deal and just give 'em half an elk without askin for no beef in trade. Maybe we could get a second elk and trade with someone else for some beef and pork?"

"That's a lot a maybin." Ennis said.

"You think we could both get an elk?" Jack asked. "I know I ain't much of a shot, but you could get two and we could put my tag on one of 'em. What do you think?"

"Gettin elk ain't no problem, Jack. It's findin a place with electricity to store the meat that's the problem."

"They got lots a room down in that cellar." Jack said. "I know momma would let us use it for free, or just pay the difference that it raises the electric bill. It's dad that's the problem."

"Sure enough." Ennis said. "But he's got the say-so. Let's get after these stumps. You can talk to your momma after. Maybe she'll have some ideas how we can work it."

"Good idea." Jack agreed.

"What next?" Jack asked as they unloaded the stumps.

"Why don't you go talk to your momma while I split these stumps." Ennis offered.

"I think you should come with me." Jack said. "Dad will be there, and I'll need you if there's any negotiatin to be done."

"You don't need me, Jack." Ennis tried to get out of it. The less time he spent around Mr. Twist the better he liked it.

"Yes, I do." Jack insisted. "With you there, I'm less likely to lose my temper. Please come with me."

"Okay." Ennis said, removing his gloves and sticking them in his back pocket. "Think peace, Jack. We want to make this work with as little trouble from the old man as possible."

"I know, I know." Jack said as he drove them up to the house. "I'll try, but I ain't promisin anythin. He just knows how to push all my buttons."

"I know." Ennis said with a comforting hand on Jack's shoulder as they walked up to the door. "That's why he does it; cause he knows that he can."

"Hey, Momma." Jack said as they entered and found her sitting at the kitchen table with her hand-written recipe book in front of her.

"Hey, Jackie; Ennis." She greeted them with a smile. "Come in, sit down. Can I get you some coffee?"

"No thanks, Momma." Jack said as he and Ennis sat themselves at the table. "We just needed to talk with you a few minutes; and maybe grab some ice. Were you gettin ready to start dinner?"

Ennis checked his watch and saw it was only a little after four o'clock.

"No, son. I was lookin for a recipe for that cake I used to bake that you liked so much. You remember, the one with cinnamon? I can't seem to find it." She flipped the pages of her book.

"You mean the Sock-It-To-Me cake? I love that!" Jack said with a big grin. It was so good to be home and getting a taste of his momma's cookin again.

"Yes, that's the one! I'd forgotten the name." She flipped through the pages quickly. "There it is! I filed it under 'S' and all this time I been lookin under the letter 'C' for cinnamon."

"Dad's in the front room?" Jack asked, taking a look towards the hall.

"Yeah. He got himself a nice fire goin and he's been sittin there enjoyin it for some time." She said. "It may be March, but there's still a good chill in the air, and I was worryin about you boys. Now there's no reason at all why the two a you can't sleep upstairs. It'd be so much better if you were in out a the cold."

"It ain't cold in the tent, Momma. Remember, it's nylon. You know how nylon is. And we got our sleepin bags."

"I know, I know." She said, knowing that was an argument she was never going to win.

"What we wanted to talk to you about was electricity. We was wonderin what it would take to get Dad to let us keep a freezer down in the cellar. Whatever it raises your bill, we'd be glad to pay the difference. You think he'd go for somethin like that?"

"Like what?" The old man's voice boomed as he came into the room. "What are you tryin to talk her into now?"

Ennis jumped as Mr. Twist came up behind him.

Jack swallowed hard. "We're talkin about electricity, Dad."

"NO! You ain't hookin up to our electricity! That's final! So get that idea right out a your head!"

"We aren't askin to do that." Jack worked hard at controlling himself. "What we're askin is if we could put a freezer – maybe two – in the cellar. We know it'll raise your bill, and we'd be willin to pay the difference. Then we could go huntin this fall and have a place to keep the meat. We'd be willin to share some a the meat with you. What do you think?"

"I think you couldn't hit the side of a barn if you was standin inside it." The old man sneered. "Fat chance you'd ever catch anythin worth eatin."

"I'm a good shot." Ennis chimed in, giving Jack a chance to settle some. "I go after elk, I get elk." Then to Mrs. Twist he asked, "You like elk meat?"

"Oh yes! We love it." She said overjoyed at the prospect of some kind of compromise between father and son. "John, I think that's more than fair."

"You would." He said with disgust as he walked over to the stove and poured himself a cup of coffee. "And what if you don't take an elk? Huh? We'd get stuck with two extra freezers in our cellar."

"We'd pay the difference in the electric bill, Dad. It wouldn't cost you nothin." Jack said, his voice raising just a bit.

"Yeah, right. And how are you gonna do that come fall and the two a you are out a work?" He said. "This is just another one a your schemes that ain't gonna come to pass, like that cabin a yours. I ain't seen a single stick go up yet." And to Mrs. Twist he said, "You mark my words, woman. First cold weather and these two will be long gone."

"If that was to happen, you'd have two brand new freezers." Ennis said, knowing he'd never let it happen if it killed him. "You could keep 'em, use 'em, or sell 'em. Either way you win."

The old man thought about that while he sipped his coffee standin at the sink. "All right; you wanna deal? Here's my terms. You miss one payment on your share a the electric bill, and the freezers are mine. And I want cash money every month. That's the deal or you can forget about it."

"You'll get cash money put in your hands when you show us the bill, and last years bill for the same month. That's the only way we'll know for sure how much it went up from our freezers." Jack argued.

"You got a deal." The old man said. "And don't forget, I get some of whatever you do manage to catch – if you do manage to catch anythin."

"We got a deal then." Jack said with a confident smile. "We'll be gettin the freezers soon as we can afford 'em. That won't be much longer. We're makin good money now."

"Yep. But for how long?" The old man asked. "Just remember, you miss one payment and them freezers and anythin in them are mine." He grinned as he left the room, sure he'd just wrangled two new freezers for himself.

"If you get in a bad way for money, Son; you let me know. I got a little put aside he don't know about." Mrs. Twist offered with a pat on Jack's arm.

"Momma, I love you to death, but that ain't gonna happen." Jack promised her. "Ennis and me are both good at budgetin our money. We got all summer to get stocked up for the winter, our garden is comin up, and Ennis and me, we'll get us that elk – maybe two."

"Is there any good fishin around here, Bud?" Ennis asked.

Mrs. Twist and Jack both looked up at him. "Why yes there is." She said.

"Sure." Jack said. "We're not but a hop, skip, and a jump from the Powder."

"Mr. Twist like fish?" Ennis asked Mrs. Twist.

"We both love fish." She said. "Any kind."

"We gotta set aside a couple a weekends and go fishin then." Ennis said. "Fish freezes real good and there's nothin tastier than a good ole fish stew on a cold winter night."

"Oh my goodness." She said. "I can't hardly wait. We haven't had any fresh fish in a long time."

"Well you're gonna have some soon." Jack said with a proud smile. If there was one thing he loved it was seeing his momma smile.

"So how do you think it went?" Ennis asked Jack as they were headed back to camp.

"You were great, Cowboy." Jack said, overjoyed that they had accomplished their goal. "You stepped in at just the right time. I was about to lose it with the old man. You kept your head and reasoned it out so that he'd think he was gettin the better part a the deal."

"We gotta come up with a couple a new freezers now." Ennis reminded him. "And they ain't cheap."

"No, but we'll need 'em not only for the meat, but for the vegetables from our garden." Jack said.

"Yep." Ennis agreed. "This deal turned out real good, Jack. Now we can keep an eye out for bargains at the grocery store. Lots a times they put their fruits and fresh vegetables on sale; or even their meats. I think we should get the freezers next payday. We can start stockin up every time we go grocery shoppin. We can buy one or two things extra and freeze 'em. By the time winter gets here, we should have a nice supply."

"Good idea, Cowboy." Jack said then after a moment asked, "You know how to freeze stuff? Fruits and vegetables, I mean?"

"More or less." Ennis said. "Maybe we should keep an eye out for a book or somethin tellin us how to do it right."

"Momma knows." Jack said. "We can ask her and write it all down."

"Good. Good." Ennis said as he parked the truck and they headed inside to get dinner started.

Their first call for Handy Man work came in from a Gillette city planner, Jerry Gilroy. He needed some trees taken down in a city park so a playground could go up. "The company that was recommended to us wants fifteen-hundred." The man said as he showed Jack and Ennis the area. "That seems an awful lot to me for takin down twelve trees. Then I gotta pay someone else to come take out the stumps! What would you charge?"

Ennis and Jack both got a little excited when they saw the trees. Every single one of them was just the size they were needing for their cabin.

"We can do it for twelve," Ennis said, "And that'll include takin out the stumps."

"You got yourself a deal." The man said and reached out a hand for a shake. "How soon can you start?"

"Tomorrow afternoon, late." Ennis said. "We get off work at four, and can be out here by about four-fifteen. We can take the trees down and haul 'em away tomorrow; and come back Saturday for the stumps. Will that work for you?"

"It sure will." Mr. Gilroy said, happy to have worked a good deal for the city. "Of course I can't pay you until the job is finished."

"We understand that, and agree completely." Ennis said. "We wouldn't expect payment until the job is done and you're satisfied. We ain't talkin about us fillin in the holes now, are we?"

"No." Mr. Gilroy said. "Our landscaper will take care of all that. You just get rid a those trees, stumps and all, and we'll see that a check is cut for you immediately. We already have the park funds in hand so it won't be a problem."

"Is there gonna be a bunch a kids here in the park Saturday?" Jack asked. "It'd be best if you could keep 'em out while we're workin. We don't want no accidents."

"That won't be a problem. We already decided to close this part of the park off until the playground is completed." He said.

"Okay." Ennis said. "We'll be here tomorrow after work then."

The next day they drove Jack's truck with the flatbed trailer on behind to work. They got off work a little early and showed up at the park just before four and got to work. One after another the trees fell to the chain saw and were winched up into the back of the flatbed. They strapped the trees onto the truck securely, and headed home; hoping that removing the trunks the next day would go as easily. It did. They were loading up the last of the stumps just before noon when Mr. Gilroy showed up.

"Hot damn! You did it!" Mr. Gilroy said with glee. "You boys did a great job! A great job! Of course, the city offices are closed until Monday, but I'll see they cut you a check Monday mornin. How would you like it made out?"

"The Twist Ranch." Ennis said as that was how they had their account set up at the bank.

"Good deal." Mr. Gilroy said and made a note in his notebook. "And would you like the check mailed or would you like to pick it up?"

"We'll pick it up." Jack said. "Is your office open at noon? That's when our lunch hour is. Noon to one."

"That'll be fine. I may not be there, but I'll see the check is left with the receptionist. All you'll need to pick it up will be some I.D." Mr. Gilroy said.

"We'll pick it up at noon then." Jack said.

"You boys did a fine job." Mr. Gilroy said again. "A real fine job."

"Thank you." They both said.

"If you hear a anyone else needin some work done, we'd appreciate it if you told 'em about us." Ennis said.

"Absolutely." Mr. Gilroy said. "I got your name in my file system now so if I hear of anyone needin some work done, I'll be sure and recommend the two of you."

"Talk about a win, win situation." Jack said later as they drove home. "We get twelve more trees the size we need, branches for firewood, and they pay us twelve hundred to boot! You can't beat that!"

"You got that right." Ennis grinned. "Tomorrow morning we hit Home Depot and pick out our freezers!"

"All right!" Jack said eagerly. "And what do we need next for the cabin?"

"Monday, after we get the check deposited in our account, we can pick up a load a four by fours and some hardware. I wanna use storm ties all over the place." Ennis said. "I want this cabin to be good and strong with all the wind we have in this area."

"Good idea." Jack agreed. "Come summer, we get some really bad storms."

"This cabin is gonna be solid, Jack. Each week we'll get more and more stuff we'll be needin. It wouldn't hurt to get out and start lookin for some rocks the right size we'll be needin for the fireplace."

"Alls we need to do for that is take a walk out back by the creek. It's got tons a rocks on both sides, far as the eye can see." Jack said.

"No kiddin?" Ennis asked. "About fist sized and kind a flat? 'Cause that's the size we need."

"I don't know; about that size I guess. We can take a look when we get home." Jack said as they drove.

Once home they made themselves a quick lunch and were about to head out to the creek when Mrs. Twist drove up.

"Jackie, Ennis – I got two messages for you." She said as they walked over to meet her. "One is from a friend a mine, Poppy Alexander. She owns an antique store in town and needs someone to make a couple a deliveries for her. She says she has three she needs made, they're all in town, and she'll pay fifty dollars per delivery."

"That sounds good." Jack said taking the note from her.

"What was the other message?" Ennis asked.

"The other message is from a Bill Pruitt." She said. "He bought one a those put-together-yourself sheds for his back yard and he can't get it together. He says they wanted two-hundred fifty to put it together for him and are askin even more now that he tried it and couldn't do it himself. So if you go in offerin less than that, you'd probably get the job."

"Can you do a put together shed?" Jack asked Ennis. "I never done one a those."

"I have. It takes some time to get one up, but we can do it. Let's call him and see. If we can get two hundred, we take the deal." Ennis said.

They followed Mrs. Twist back to the house and made the two calls. They got both jobs. They decided to take the delivery job that afternoon, and set the shed job up for Sunday afternoon so they could get their freezers first.

"I'd say this was a pretty darn good weekend; wouldn't you?" Jack asked Sunday evening as they ate their dinner.

"Yep." Ennis agreed. "Four hundred dollars cash money, and twelve hundred more tomorrow. Can't beat a weekend like that."

"So that's sixteen hundred we can spend on cabin buildin supplies." Jack said happily.

"Don't need to spend it all on that right now. What we need is some mortar mix for the fireplace." Ennis said. "I figure we can hit Home Depot for that, and maybe stop at the grocery store and see about gettin some meat for the freezer."

"Ohhh, I like that idea!" Jack agreed readily.

Next day at work they were tellin Mr. Elliot about their weekend and their plan to buy a little extra meat each payday for their freezer. He suggested they try Hennessey's Butcher Shop for their meat.

"They got the freshest meat at the best prices." Mr. Elliot assured them. "I never got a bad cut a meat from 'em; and they got all kinds a meat, game, and fish. I don't suppose you boys hunt?"

"We do." Ennis said, wondering at the question.

"Well, you need to talk to Sean Hennessey then. You bring him in a deer, and he'll butcher, pack and quick freeze it for you in trade for the head and hide. His brother Paddy has the place next door and he's a taxidermist and leather worker. Also, if you take an elk, that's a lot a meat; and he'll make the same deal with you, butcherin it for the head and hide, and he'll trade for it if you get more than you want."

"Trade what?" Ennis asked.

"Other meat." Mr. Elliot said. "Say you come in with three-hundred pounds a elk meat. You might wanna keep half a that, and trade the rest of it, pound for pound for beef or pork. He makes all kinds a trades like that. It works out great if you hunt or fish. And that's why his meat is always the freshest."

"That's great!" Jack said, turning to Ennis. "We could keep one elk for ourselves and the folks, and trade the second one for beef and pork."

"You plan on gettin more than one elk this fall?" Mr. Elliot grinned at the optimism.

"You better believe it." Jack said. "What Ennis aims at, he hits!"

Ennis put his head down, wishing Jack would hush.

"It's not always the shootin that counts," Mr. Elliot said. "You gotta find 'em first."

"I can find 'em." Ennis said. "That won't be a problem."

"You know what?" Mr. Elliot said with a grin. "After getting to know the two of you – I wouldn't bet against you. You say you're gonna get two elk; I'm bettin that's just what you'll do."

They spent an hour talking with Sean Hennessey after work and got a lot of great information and tips before heading home.

"Jesus, Jack." Ennis said as they drove home. "This just keep gettin better and better. I never knew that butcher shops did all that stuff; buyin meat from hunters as well as tradin for it. And he says he can get us more tags if we need 'em. Come September we can start huntin. We should be able to make more than enough to pay the electric bill all winter."

"I really liked Hennessey." Jack said. "He's got a great sense of humor and he knows his huntin."

"You ever been to that fishin place he was talkin about?" Ennis asked.

"Nope." Jack answered. "It sure sounds nice though. I can't imagine catchin that many fish that fast. I believed him though."

"So did I." Ennis said. "And that place he was talkin about sounded like it wasn't all that far from Lightnin Flat."

"That's the best part." Jack said. "If we could find it, we could get up there, catch our limit, and be back before noon."

"We'd have to get us another ice chest. If those fish are as big as he says they are, our two little ice chests won't hold many of 'em." Ennis said.

"I was thinkin about that." Jack said. "I know the big one I got was expensive, but if we're gonna be doin a lot a huntin and fishin, and it looks like we are, we might ought to invest in gettin another big one."

"As close as it is; I think we should take our two small ice chests and go up and see if we can find the place he was talkin about." Ennis reasoned. "If we find it, and it's as good as he says it is, we'll see if we can't work a couple a those big chests into our budget."

Jack stopped the truck at the house to put their newly purchased meat in the freezer, picked up more ice and asked if there were any messages. Mrs. Twist had one more message for them. Some woman wanted them to do a paint job for her son's room. Seems she called a contractor and they refused to paint it the color she wanted.

"What color did she want?" Jack asked.

"Black." Mrs. Twist said. "She said that's what her son wants, and that's the color he should get."

"I ain't got no trouble paintin a room black if that's what she wants." Jack said.

"Did she sound sober?" Ennis asked.

"Oh yes." Mrs. Twist said. "She just sounded like the kind of mother who would give her kid anythin he wants."

"You wanna call her, or should I?" Jack asked Ennis.

"Don't matter. I got no problem paintin whatever color she wants. Find out what she's willin to pay."

"Okay." Jack said and picked up the phone to dial. "When you want me to set it up for?"

"How about tomorrow after work." Ennis suggested.

Jack made the call and scheduled the job. The woman said she'd pay two hundred for the job and was thrilled that they could get to it so quickly.

"That'd be a good customer to have." Mrs. Twist said. "People like that are repaintin all the time, and if they like your work, they'll recommend you to their friends."

"That's what we're hopin for, Momma." Jack said.

The house was a huge pink brick three story place; landscaped lawns, like something out of a magazine. The room was big for a kids bedroom, but true to her word, it was completely empty and they were able to finish the job in three hours. They stopped in town and had burgers for dinner and headed straight over to Home Depot for more supplies.

"This weekend, we work on the cabin." Ennis said and Jack agreed, but it didn't happen. They got a message to call a woman about some trees she wanted removed from her property. She lived in Rocky Point, about thirty miles east of Lightning Flat.

Charlene Mills drove them over to the field she wanted cleared. There were thirty two trees and she wanted them all gone. Ennis asked if she didn't want to leave a few so that the animals would have shade and she said no. She had this thing about trees and didn't want any on her property. She said she understood the price for tree removal was a hundred dollars a tree and agreed to that without even discussing it.

"Thirty-two hundred dollars!" Jack whispered as they walked around looking at the area. "And most of 'em the right size for the cabin!"

"Your advertisement said you do other jobs as well." She said. "I need all of this fencing torn down. Do you do that sort of thing?"

"Well, yes we do, Ma'am; but there ain't nothin wrong with that fencin." Ennis said.

"I don't care." She said with a toss of her blond head. "We're going to be breeding horses and I want this whole place fenced in white wood. I think it will look just gorgeous the way the land stretches out and rolls from front to back. Just imagine what it will look like with all these trees out of the way and nothing but beautiful green grass and that white fence shining in the sunlight. It'll be the kind of place people will want to come and do business."

"Yes, Ma'am." Ennis said with a sideways glance at Jack who appeared to be as appalled as he was. "We can take the fencin down if you're sure that's what you want."

"And you'll haul it all away?" She asked.

"Yes Ma'am." Ennis said.

"I could pay you another twenty-five hundred to get rid of it." She said. "There's a lot of it. This place is three hundred acres. You think you can do it for that price? I've got a budget I have to stick to and that's all I got in it for clearing this place. I've already got a fence company on standby to put up the new fence. How soon do you think you can start?"

"This weekend." Ennis said after getting a nod from Jack. We can get rid a all the trees and pull the stumps over the weekend. The fencin we'll have to come by after work to get started on it. That'd be about five o'clock. We could get an hour or so in each evenin before it gets dark. It might take a week or so before we finish that."

"That's not a problem." She said as they headed back to the house.

"Five-thousand, seven-hundred dollars!" Jack gushed when they were alone in their pickup heading home.

"Yeah, and we sure can use those trees." Ennis said. "I hate takin that perfectly good fence down though. It can't be more than a few years old. She must be some kind a nut to wanna scrap it like that."

"I don't really care." Jack said. "We can use that fencin. We get our pastures fenced in and some good grass up, we might just be able to get us a few cows; get us a small herd started."

"I don't wanna get no cows yet until we got a barn for 'em, Jack. And I don't think there's any way we're gonna have time to get a barn up. Look how long it's taken us to just get started on the cabin."

"I know; but once we get started, it should go pretty fast; won't it?" Jack asked.

"It ain't gonna be fast, Jack. We're gonna take our time and do it right." Ennis said as he drove.

"It's gonna be nice havin just a short drive home after we finish clearin those trees." Jack said. "You think we got about enough trees now to finish the cabin?"

"We got enough to get the walls all around about half way up, I'm guessin." Ennis said as he pulled into their campsite. "Maybe even a little more than that."

"Well I can't wait to get started." Jack said as they eyed their growing stack of timber.

"Me too." Ennis said. "We might have to figure a way to do some of the work after dark. I just wish there was a way to get some light back in there."

"I told you Momma says we can run some extensions from the pump house if we want to." Jack said.

"No, I don't wanna do that. You're dad would throw a fit if their electric bill jumped that much. He might get mad and call the whole deal off."

"He probably would." Jack sighed as they made their way into the tent, turning on their little battery ceiling lights as they went.

Sitting at the table, Ennis pulled out his notebook and penciled in 'tree work - Rocky Point', for both Saturday and Sunday, and 'fence work – Rocky Point' on every evening for the next week.

"From now on, we best just take jobs that we can handle evenings." Ennis said. "That way we can keep our weekends free to work on the cabin."

"That's a good idea." Jack agreed. "Unless, of course, we get offered another five-thousand dollar job."

"Yeah; but don't count on another one like that comin along anytime soon." Ennis said as he closed up his notebook and pocketed it. "Those kind a jobs come along only once in a blue moon."

"Yeah." Jack said stretching. "You about ready for bed?"

"You bet." Ennis said. "Soon as I clean up a little."

"Yeah, I need to wash too." Jack said. "Hey, I got an idea. How about I wash you and you wash me?"

"Ummm. I do like the way you think, Jack Twist." Ennis grinned and zipped the door closed tight.

The next evening when they got home from work, Mrs. Twist had a message for them to call Poppy over at the antique store. She had an in-town delivery of a table and chairs set and they made arrangements to do it the next day on their lunch hour. After making the delivery they walked around her shop as Poppy made out their check.

"What're you lookin at so hard?" Ennis asked as he walked up behind Jack staring at a piece of furniture.

"An old ice box." Jack said, opening it for Ennis to see the inside. "It's good sized and it ain't all that much more than I paid for that ice chest."

Ennis looked the piece over carefully. It had been fully restored and was in 'almost new' condition.

"This'd hold even more than your ice chest." Ennis said.

"That's what I was thinkin." Jack said.

"You boys interested in that ice box?" Poppy asked them going into her sales pitch, explaining all the features about the size, the restored condition, the interior with its original shelves and drip pan intact.

"We want it, but can't take it with us right now. Could we pay you for it now and pick it up after work? That'd be about four or shortly after?" Ennis asked.

"Certainly." Poppy said and began working up a receipt while Jack wrote out a check.

"Why didn't you wanna take it?" Jack asked as they left. "We got plenty a room in the truck."

"It's gonna rain, and I don't want it sittin out in the back of the truck gettin rained on." Ennis said as they hurried back to work.

"How do you always know that?" Jack asked eying the sky. "We ain't had the radio in the truck on, yet you always seem to know when it's gonna to rain."

"All you have to do is look at the sky, Jack; and sniff the air. It'll tell you all you need to know." Ennis said as they made their way back to their work site and got on with the rest of their day. The afternoon shower put their outside paint job off until Monday so they made it home early, arriving at their camp a little after three after going back to the antique shop and picking up their ice box. They got it settled inside the main tent in a back corner. It took twice the amount of ice that the ice chest did, but it worked great and they eagerly filled it with their items.

They decided next to head on out to the creek and start gathering stones for the fireplace. Ennis pushed the wheelbarrow and Jack carried their two five-gallon galvanized pails.

"The idea is never take too many from any one spot." Ennis explained. "Start some distance away and work back towards camp. That way you have less distance to carry the heaviest load."

"You think this will be enough?" Jack asked later as they emptied their load close to their foundation.

"Nah." Ennis said. "But it's a good start. I can start workin on it evenings after work. Only a couple rows can be put up at a time anyway; then you have to give it a good day for the mortar to set before addin more. It takes a long time to put one a these things up, but if you do it right, it'll last a lifetime."

"What's next?" Jack asked. "We take the rest of the afternoon off and rest up?"

Ennis gave Jack 'the look'. "It ain't time for restin, Jack. Restin is for evenins. Daylight is for workin."

"All right, all right." Jack relented. "I just thought maybe you were tired after pushin a loaded wheelbarrow all that way."

"We got no time to be tired, Jack. I figured this would be a good time to get those four-by-fours up."

"Oh good!" Jack said, excited now that the frame was actually going up.

Up they went slowly, one at a time, and bolted into place until there was one standing at each corner and both sides of every window, the fireplace, and doorways; and others connecting at the bottoms and tops to make a complete sturdy framework.

"I thought framework was usually done with two-by-fours. How come we're usin four-by-fours?" Jack asked.

"Cause logs are a lot heavier than plywood and I wanna make this as strong as possible." Ennis said as he held the level up against the last piece to go in.

"That makes sense." Jack agreed wiping the sweat off his face with his shirt sleeve. "What next?"

"It's time to get naked." Ennis said, catching Jack off guard.

"Huh?" Jack asked, sure he had heard wrong.

"It's after seven. Evenin." Ennis grinned at him as they gathered up their tools. "Time for a good washing up, dinner, and a little a that 'restin' that we both enjoy so much."

"We gotta haul in some more water first." Jack grinned as they deposited the tools in the small camp tent.

"I been thinkin about that, Jack." Ennis said while they loaded up their half-dozen water jugs.

"You thinkin about runnin a water line back here?" Jack asked. "Maybe we should talk with Mr. Elliot about it and see what he would charge?"

"Nah, that's for later on; after we get our cabin up." Ennis said. "I was thinkin more along the lines a getting a dozen or so hoses, hookin 'em together and runnin 'em out here. I could make a frame out of the wood scraps we have, and rig up a spigot. We could set it up in our kitchen area. What do you figure, that pump is about a thousand – fifteen hundred feet from here? It wouldn't take but ten or fifteen a those hundred-foot hoses to reach out here. It'd be costly; but it sure would be worth it."

"With water here at the campsite, we could take a bath every night." Jack was all for the idea.

"Yep. That's kind a what I was thinkin." Ennis said, grinning at Jack's glee. "We need to come up with somethin bigger than that bowl to wash up in though. I was thinkin maybe we could find a couple a those old wash tubs."

"Maybe we could find some at the dump?" Jack suggested.

"If it was dumped by someone, it'd probably be too leaky to use." Ennis said as they drove up to the pump and started filling their jugs. "I was thinkin we should take a better look around at Poppy's Place. With all that old stuff she's got, she might have a tub around there somewhere."

"She might." Jack said. "I saw an old wringer washer there. She might have the tubs too."

"Good idea." Ennis said. "And that wringer washer might not be a bad idea either."

"Aren't those things electric?" Jack asked as they filled their last water container, screwed the lid on tight, and headed back to camp.

"Some are, some aren't." Ennis said. "It would be nice to have somethin big enough to do laundry in. This washin our clothes out in a little bucket really sucks."

"I agree." Jack said. "We could always carry our laundry into town and hit a laundromat."

"No, I hate them places." Ennis said. "You end up sittin around for a couple hours waitin for your clothes and it would be sendin up a red flag for anyone to take notice that the two of us are livin together."

Jack had nothing to say about that. "Why don't we plan on hittin Poppy's on our lunch hour Monday. Maybe she'll have somethin we can use; if not, she may know somewhere we can find some."

They rinsed out their two galvanized pails and brought them into the kitchen area where they unrolled the nylon side walls, giving them as much privacy as possible. They heated water on one of their little stoves and some canned beef stew on the other. With dinner finished, they started their baths. It was actually more of an organized water battle than a bath. In the end, they both ended up cleaned, well satisfied, and wrapped around each other sleeping comfortably.

At dawn they were up, had breakfast, and left for the ranch just outside of Rocky Point. By noon they had half the trees down and loaded up. They drove home, unloaded, had lunch, and headed on back to finish the trees. They made it home at sunset, unloaded, ate a quick dinner and went straight to bed.

The next morning, they did it all over again with the stumps.

"I didn't expect that job to go so easily." Jack said Sunday evening at the dinner table.

"We been lucky so far, Jack. All the trees we been asked to take down have been pretty easy to pull."

"How much of a job do you think pullin that fence is gonna be?" Jack asked.

"Don't know." Ennis answered honestly. "It looks like a good sturdy fence, but you never can tell."

"I guess we won't know until we hook it up to the winch and start pullin." Jack said.

"We wanna take our time with it, Jack. Make sure we roll it up as we go so we'll have the use of it. Maybe instead a the winch, we should use the pickup. It ought to be able to pull those posts and it'll be less likely to damage the wire if we take it nice and slow."

"All right." Jack said. "Whatever you think is best. How long you think it's gonna take us to do the whole place? Remember there's cross fencin too."

"It stays light a lot longer now so I'm hopin we can pretty much do one side a the place each evenin." Ennis said. "Then maybe finish up the cross fencin next weekend. It all depends on how tough it is pullin those posts."

"Why don't we figure on grabbin some burgers and eatin on the way home next week. That way we won't have to stop here and can head directly to Rocky Point after work. It'd save us a little time."

"Sounds good. The sooner we get this job done, the sooner we'll be gettin that big fat check." Ennis said.

"That's right." Jack grinned. "Have you thought about what we're gonna do with it yet?"

"Nope." Ennis answered. "Let's just bank it for now and worry about spendin it later."

Monday on their lunch hour, they were at Poppy's Place, checking out the wringer washing machine and looking for tubs. The washer turned out to be electric, much to their disappointment. They talked a little with Poppy about wash tubs. She didn't have any, but recommended another antique shop a few blocks away that had some. They thanked her, headed over to Yesterday's Treasures, and spoke with a little gray-haired lady with the name 'Ginger' on her name tag.

"I have just what you need." Ginger said as she led then into the back of her shop. There sat a wooden frame contraption that held two laundry-sized tubs, and between them, hand-cranked wooden rollers.

"Does this thing really work?" Jack asked.

"It certainly does." Ginger said proudly, demonstrating as she turned the handle. "It's not completely, one hundred percent antique. The rollers work work on springs, and we had to replace those. Also, there are a few pieces of the frame that had to be replaced."

Ennis checked the frame work for strength, checked out the repairs and asked the price before saying, "We'll take it."

They didn't have the cash with them, so Jack took went out to his truck and got his checkbook. While he was writing out the check, Ennis wandered around looking at things.

"Jack Twist?" Ginger asked when she looked at the check. "You any relation to Roberta Twist? You're not Jackie; are you?"

"Roberta Twist is my mother." Jack grinned. "And yes, she still calls me Jackie."

"Bertie and I went to school together! She told me you were back and buildin a cabin out at your ranch. I'm so glad I got to meet you!" She shook his hand warmly. "Is there anythin else you might need?"

Ennis walked up then and Jack introduced him. "We were hopin you might have one a those old cast iron stoves."

"Oh, sorry, I don't; but Molly does, over at Molly's Corner. Her place is four blocks down and two over. It's a real beaut too! You be sure and tell her you're Bertie's son. She'll give you a discount." She became a little flustered then. "Oh my goodness, I should have given you a discount as well. If you have the time..."

"That's okay." Jack assured her, more than satisfied with the price of their new 'washer', "We don't really have to time right now. We're on our lunch hour and have to be gettin back."

"Next time you come in then." Ginger smiled at them warmly as they walked out – Jack carrying the tubs and Ennis carrying the frame.

"Tomorrow we hit this Molly's Corner." Ennis said. "If we could find us one a those old stoves to cook on, we'll be all set."

"I figured we'd be cookin in the fireplace." Jack said as they loaded up and headed back to work.

"Well, it can be done; but it's a lot harder than you'd think. One a those old cast iron stoves would work just fine and it would be an extra source a heat."

"We'd need to put in a smoke stack for it. You know how to do that?" Jack asked.

"How hard can it be?" Ennis asked. "You just put a hole in the roof or wall, and make sure you seal all around it good. We can figure it out."

The fence pulling that evening worked out a lot easier than they thought it would. They were able to get one entire side out, rolled and hauled back to the house.

"Where you getting all that fencin?" Mr. Twist confronted them as they unloaded. "You better not be stealin that stuff, Jackie."

"It ain't stolen, Dad." Jack said, not the least surprised by his dad's attitude.

"I'll be watchin the news tonight. Any fencin come up stolen, I'm callin the Sheriff! I won't have no thieves livin on my ranch!" The old man said as he stormed off.

"I see what you mean about him." Ennis said as they finished unloading.

"Huh?" Jack asked.

"He ain't been in a good mood since we been here, and it's been near a month now." Ennis said.

"I can't ever remember seein him in a good mood." Jack said as they hauled down the last of the fencing and rolled it over with the others.

"I don't know about you, Bud, but I'm ready for a bath." Ennis grinned at him.

Jack grinned back, raised his eyebrows a couple a times and they headed for their tent and another perfect evening.

Tuesday lunch time, and they headed over to Molly's Corner to get a look at the cast iron cook stove.

She greeted them warmly and said that Ginger had called and said they might be over.

The stove was a thing of beauty all right. It was huge. At four-feet across, it was much bigger than Ennis had expected and it had been completely restored. It's gleaming turquoise enamel paint, and pristine condition matched its huge price tag.

"It is beautiful," Ennis said. "But it's way out a our budget. We was thinkin of somethin much smaller."

"And a lot cheaper." Jack added, looking at the fifteen-hundred dollar price tag.

"We do have lay-away, and can hold it for you for up to a year, if that's any help." She offered.

"Ma'am, we just ain't got this kind a money to be spendin on a stove." Ennis explained and started to walk away.

"Wait a minute, Ennis." Jack stopped him. Then turned to Molly and asked, "You don't need any work done around here; do you? Repairs, paintin, deliveries? Maybe we could work it off?"

"Oh my goodness!" She said, a bit confused. "I'd forgotten. You're Jack and Ennis, the ones who put up those Handy Man notices. Bertie mentioned that, but I'd forgotten. I was thinkin of callin you. You don't by any chance to roofin; do you?"

"Yes, Ma'am." Ennis said coming back a few steps. "You needin a new roof?"

"I do." She sighed. "I been needin one for years now, but they tell me it's gonna cost forty-five hundred dollars! And I just don't have that kind a money."

"Forty-five for this little place?" Ennis asked. "You got any leaks?"

"I do." She shook her head sadly. "Up stairs is where I live. I get leaks in the back bedroom every spring when the rains start. I just keep on havin 'em patch it; but it never holds for very long."

"Tell you what." Ennis said as he paced around a bit running figures in his head. "Supplies for the job will run you, maybe twelve or fifteen hundred; could run up to two thousand if we have to replace much a the deckin. You pay for the supplies, and we'll do the labor in exchange for the stove."

"Oh my!" She flustered. "That would be a big savins for me. Could I think about it a bit and let you know?"

"Sure." Jack said. "We couldn't start right away any how. We got another job that's gonna take us at least a week to finish up."

"I won't keep you waitin." She promised as they walked to the front door. "Soon as I make up my mind, I'll call you either way."

"Thank you, Ma'am." Ennis and Jack both said as they tipped their hats and left.

"Man, that's a beautiful stove." Jack said as they headed back to work.

"It ain't what I was lookin for, but it'd sure be nice to have." Ennis agreed.

"And think a the heat that thing would put out." Jack offered. "With a fireplace on one side and that stove on the other, we'd be nice and toasty warm."

"Yep." Ennis agreed. "And workin our asses off to come up with enough firewood for the both of 'em."

"We're workin our asses off anyway." Jack grinned. "We might as well be comfortable doin it."

"True." Ennis agreed. "And come winter, we won't have jobs no more, and wishin we had the work to do."

"That's right." Jack grinned as they pulled up and parked. Ready for their afternoon's work. "As far as I'm concerned, September can't come fast enough."

"Don't wish it here too fast, Bud. We got to get our cabin up first."

Tuesday's fence pulling went about the same as Monday's, only they didn't get as much done. It had been a hard day at work, and they were tired.

"We'll catch up tomorrow." Jack said when he saw Ennis' disappointment at their slower progress.

"Hope so." Ennis said as they loaded what they did get down onto the back of the flat-bed and strapped it down before calling it a day and heading home.

Wednesday morning they woke up to rain. They made the drive into Gillette to work only to be told there would be no work for the day since rain was expected for the entire day in that area. By the time they got home the storm had passed the Lightning Flat area.

"This would be a great time to see if we can find that fishin spot Mr. Hennessy told us about." Ennis suggested.

"Yes!" Jack agreed eagerly.

They loaded up their fishing gear, their one big ice chest; then a quick stop at the house for ice, and they were on their way. The Powder River was less than an hours drive from Lightning Flat but they didn't stop at any of the usual places with easy access to the water. They drove on up the dirt road that ran along the river's edge, until the road ended.

"This looks like a good spot right here." Jack said as they got out and looked around.

"Nope." Ennis said. "Hennessey said about half a mile past where the road ends. There's supposed to be a bend in the river with a little water fall. That's the spot he said to look for."

"All right." Jack said easily as he grabbed his gear. "I'm just glad to be out here, with nothin to do but relax and do a little fishin."

"If it's anythin like Hennessey says it is, we won't have much time for relaxin." Ennis said.

"You didn't believe that part; did you?" Jack asked as they walked. "That the fish bite as fast as you can get your line in the water?"

"I guess we'll be findin out shortly. I can hear the waterfall up ahead." Ennis said.

"I don't hear it." Jack said, listening carefully. "You must have some kind a super-sonic hearin or somethin."

Ennis chuckled. "Maybe I'm just hungry for some fish and I wanna believe it."

"Well, I could sure go for some nice fried fish for supper." Jack said. "And maybe some a those garlicky fried potatoes to go with the fish?"

"Sounds good, Bud." Ennis agreed.

"If we really do catch a bunch, we can freeze the rest." Jack said. "It'd be real nice come winter to know we had some stashed away just waitin for that fryin pan."

"We'll need to give some to your folks." Ennis said.

"Why? We didn't promise 'em no fish." Jack argued. "We promised 'em some elk; not fish."

"Jack – we catch a bunch – we share 'em. It's the right thing to do." Ennis said as they finally came to the little waterfall.

"Wow." Jack said. "What a great spot. We could come up here this summer and maybe do a little skinny dippin."

"No, now Jack; get your mind on fishin. We can't be doin no skinny dippin where people could come walkin up on us at any minute."

"What's the matter with skinny dippin?" Jack asked as they readied their lines. "People do it all the time."

"I know you, and skinny dippin ain't all you were thinkin about doin up here." Ennis scolded him, but he had to admit to himself that the idea was appealing. He wouldn't let Jack know that though.

They each had three poles and they secured them to the ground some distance apart before finding a place to sit and rest. They had no sooner stretched out and lit a cigarette then their poles started bending.

"Damn!" Ennis said and jumped up. One of his poles was bent way over.

"All right!" Jack said as one of his was bending too.

Before Ennis got the first fish off, another of his poles was bending. Jack was just as busy with his.

They barely had time to gut and stash the fish in the ice chest before more were biting.

"I guess Hennessey was right." Jack admitted with a laugh as they worked on their catch.

An hour later they had to quit as their ice chest was full, and they were no where near their limit of ten each. And they were all good sized fish averaging about five pounds each.

The half mile walk back to their truck was a bit of a struggle, carrying their gear and the heavy ice chest between them. When they had time to look, they discovered they had ten fish. Half of what they were allowed to take in any one day.

They drove up to the house and carried the ice chest into the kitchen.

"Look what we caught, Momma!" Jack said.

Mr. Twist came in when he heard them arrive. "Whats you got there?" He demanded.

"Take a look, Dad." Jack said proudly. "We caught ten, and half of 'em are yours."

The old man looked a little surprised but managed to get at least one barb in. "The ones on the bottom look like these on top? Or are you plannin on givin us the little throw-aways?"

"They're all good sized." Ennis said. "Why don't you pick out the five you want."

"Well dump 'em out in the sink." The old man said. "I guess I can sort 'em out for you."

"Oh boys, they look just delicious!" Mrs. Twist said. "We haven't had fresh fish in ages."

"You got any extra a that aluminum foil, Momma?" Jack asked. "We don't have none, and ain't that what you're supposed to freeze 'em in?"

"That's what I find works the best, Jackie; and yes, I have practically a full roll." She smiled at him lovingly. "You two are so sweet to share your catch with us – why don't I wrap and freeze your five for you."

"Oh thanks, Momma." Jack said. "That would be great."

"We only need four frozen." Ennis said. "We're gonna have one for dinner."

"I think we will too!" She said looking over the fish that the old man had separated out giving them the biggest and leaving the five smallest for Jack and Ennis before leaving the room and heading back to the living room and his TV.

Mrs. Twist pulled out the biggest fish of all, wrapped it in foil, and tossed it back into the ice chest. "You should cook that one up for dinner." She said with a wink and began re-sorting the fish so they would be more equal.

Jack and Ennis picked up their ice chest and left.

"I really like your momma." Ennis said as they heaved the chest into the back of the pickup. "Can't say the same for your dad though."

"My feelings exactly." Jack said as they drove on out back.

They ate peanut butter sandwiches for lunch.

"So what do we do this afternoon?" Jack asked.

"I been thinkin about that." Ennis said as he sipped his coffee. "It's too damp out to do any work so I was thinkin we ought to rest up, maybe do a little skinny dippin right here in our new wash tubs, maybe take a nap after."

"Really?" Jack asked nearly tipping his chair over as he hurried to close down the kitchen area and flipped the lock on the door.

"You don't wanna finish your lunch?" Ennis grinned at him.

"Huh?" Jack said, and seeing one small piece of his sandwich left he tossed it in his mouth, gulped down the rest of his coffee and pulled the two wash tubs out and stated warming up some water.

Ennis chuckled and joined him.

CHAPTER FOUR

(Last week of April 1984)

By Sunday they had finished pulling the fence and were loading up the last of it when Charlene Mills drove up. "Oh this is great!" She said as she looked towards the empty field where the trees had been taken down. "This looks so much better."

Ennis and Jack exchanged looks.

"You guys did a great job." She said as she walked over to them. "And all the fencing is down and gone?"

"Yes, Ma'am." Ennis said. "This is the last of it."

"This is just great; what an improvement." She gushed. "I'm so pleased. I've got your check right here. I was going to call you and see if you wanted me to mail it or if you wanted to pick it up. Now I can just give it to you in person. Who should I make it out to, you want both names on it?"

"Just make it out to the Twist Ranch." Ennis said.

"I noticed your ad said that you do other odd jobs. Would you be interested in doing another job for me?" She asked as she quickly wrote out the check and handed it to Ennis.

"Sure!" Jack answered quickly.

Ennis wasn't so sure. He wanted to be spending more time on their cabin.

"This old house here that I've inherited has great potential, but it's full of old junky furniture. What I need is for you to haul it all away." She said. "Would you be interested in doing something like that?"

"What do you mean, 'haul it away'?" Ennis asked. "Where you want it hauled to?"

"Oh I don't care what you do with it. Take it to the dump, give it away, sell it. I don't care. I just want it gone; all gone." She said.

Ennis looked at the house. It was a neat, two story. Old, for sure, but well maintained. He couldn't believe it was full of junk furniture."

"And that ugly camper-truck in the driveway – can you get rid of that awful thing for me too?" She asked.

"You talkin about that Ford?" Ennis asked. "That ain't but a couple a years old. You could sell it."

"It's a Ford!" She said with disgust. "Nobody drives a Ford any more unless maybe a T-bird."

"We'll make you a deal." Ennis offered. "How about we haul all the furniture off for you in exchange for the pickup?"

"You got yourself a deal!" She said happily. "Listen, I've got my decorator coming in tomorrow to take a look at the place. Could you take that truck with you today? I'd really appreciate it if it was gone before she got here."

"Sure thing." Ennis said. "You got the keys?"

"Right here." She said as she dug through her purse and pulled out a set of keys and handed it to him. "And that's the house key. Go on in and have a look around. My painters won't be available for another month so that gives you till the end of May to get rid of everything." She gave a little gasp and looked at her watch. "Oh look at the time! I've got to be at the airport in Gillette in an hour." She hopped in her car, calling out the window to them. "I'll have my attorney transfer the title for you. What name do you want it in?"

"The Twist Ranch." Ennis called to her as she backed down the driveway and drove away.

They stood watching her go.

"Did she really _give_ us that truck and camper just for hauling off some old furniture?" Jack asked.

"Yep." Ennis said as they walked towards the truck. "And it makes me worry a bit. You know, that house could be full of pianos or somethin. Stuff that's really heavy."

"Hell, even if we have to hire someone to come in and move the stuff, we're gettin a pickup with a camper, and they ain't but a couple years old!" Jack said. "We can take this huntin and have a nice warm place to sleep. No more sleepin on the ground."

Ennis got in behind the wheel while Jack sat co-pilot. He put the key in and the engine started right up. "Don't sound like nothin's wrong with it." He said.

"The only thing wrong with it is it's a Ford." Jack gave a little sneer.

"Wow. I can't believe this. Look, Jack. Only thirty-seven thousand miles on it." Ennis said. "It's practically brand new."

"Let's check out the camper!" Jack said and jumped out.

Ennis followed him around back, found the key, unlocked the door and they stepped inside.

Jack switched on the overhead light and let out a whistle. "Look at this thing, Cowboy! It couldn't be more perfect!"

"This thing has got to be brand new." Ennis said as he gazed around at the dinette, stove, refrigerator, bunk, and all the little compartments. One a nice sized pantry, one a wardrobe, and one held a port-a-potty.

"All the comforts of home." Jack said as he hopped up on the bunk. "Wanna try it out?"

"Uh uh." Ennis said. "I wanna get inside the house and see exactly what this thing is gonna cost us."

"We got at least a month to clear it out." Jack said as they headed for the door. "Whatever it is, it can't be all that bad."

"Let's hope not." Ennis said as they entered the front door.

They walked into a very nicely furnished living room. Wine colored leather couch and two recliners, end tables and a huge television. Jack and Ennis looked at each other with a shrug.

"What's wrong with this furniture?" Ennis asked after Jack took a seat in one of the recliners and flipped the lever raising the foot rest.

"I don't see a thing wrong with it." Jack said.

"You know; I'm kind a gettin a funny feelin about all this." Ennis said. "What if... on my god... what if none a this belongs to her? This house, and the ranch, the truck!"

Jack came up out of his chair with a serious frown. "But..." he had nothing to say other than that.

"We could be in some serious trouble here, Jack." Ennis began to worry.

"Now hold on a minute here." Jack said. "Why would anyone lie about somethin like this?"

"I don't know. Maybe she's got a grudge against whoever really does own this place." Ennis said.

"Then if we took the truck..." Jack said.

"It could be grand theft auto!" Ennis filled in for him.

"Nah." Jack said. "She's nutty all right, but I don't think she'd do somethin like that."

"Let's look around more. See if we can find somethin with her name on it." Ennis suggested.

"She said she inherited this place; so anything with the Mills name on it would help." Jack said as they went into some of the other rooms.

They wandered from one room to the other until they came to what was obviously a man's study. A big carved oak desk sat at one end of the room in front of a fireplace with a deer's head mounted above it.

"Maybe there's somethin in the desk with names on it." Ennis said and began rummaging through drawers.

"Relax." Jack said. "Look at this." He held up a photograph in a silver frame of an old man and the woman who hired them, Charlene Mills.

Ennis took the photo and looked closely at it. At the bottom right hand corner was a hand-written note. "To Grandpa on your eight-fourth birthday. I love you. Charlene." He breathed a big sigh. "I guess it's all okay then. That's her for sure."

"Yeah." Jack agreed. "And the photo doesn't look all that old. So everythin is on the up and up then."

"I guess so." Ennis said. "I was really worried there for a few minutes."

"I was too." Jack said with a relieved grin. "I thought we were gonna lose that pickup."'

"I was worried we might end up in jail." Ennis grinned.

"I guess she's just a little bit nutty." Jack said. "Some rich people are just like that. If something don't suit 'em, they just toss it out – no matter how much money it cost."

"Well, I didn't see any pianos, or anythin that looks that difficult to move." Ennis said. "Let's take a look upstairs."

"I'm sure every room is gonna have a piano in it." Jack teased as they climbed the stairs and got an elbow in the ribs from Ennis.

"Look at all these bedrooms." Ennis said as they made their way into one after the other, plus the two bathrooms.

"Six bedrooms." Jack said. "That old man must a had a big family."

"Yep." Ennis said. "And now his granddaughter is throwin all his stuff out."

"Well," Jack said as they made their way back down stairs. "He's beyond carin now."

"For sure." Ennis agreed as they made their way back outside. They stood on the porch and smoked a cigarette in silence. "Sixteen rooms. That's a big house."

"Uh huh." Jack agreed. "So what do you want to do with all the furniture? You think we could sell it somewhere?"

"That stuff upstairs, and some a the downstairs stuff, we could see if one a those antique dealers might wanna try and sell it for us." Ennis said. "I just wish our place was farther along. I wouldn't mind keepin some of it for us."

"I been thinkin the same thing." Jack said. "How many rooms did you plan on for our cabin?"

"Six. Livin room, two bedrooms, dinin room, kitchen, and bathroom." Ennis said. "But I only figured on the livin room to start; and the rest of those rooms maybe next year."

"How far you think this fifty-seven-hundred dollars will go towards gettin it all done this summer?" Jack asked.

"Jeez, Jack. That's a ton a work, a ton a more trees just the right size, and more hours a work than we have between us as long as we're workin full time."

"Maybe we should quit and just work on the cabin?" Jack suggested.

"No, we can't quit, Bud. We told Mr. Elliot we'd work for him until his men came back in September."

"Well maybe we should just quit the handy man jobs then?" Jack asked.

"No, Jack. We need all the cash money we can get. We got no work lined up after September. That means no more pay check Fridays. If we quit the handy man work altogether; we wouldn't have any income at all. And we need it if we're gonna pay that electric bill."

"Well, let's go home and talk about it. It's nearly dinner time and I'm hungry." Jack said.

"All right." Ennis said taking the Ford truck keys from his pocket. "I guess we don't have to worry none about takin the truck."

"Nah." Jack agreed. "The gal is nutty all right, but I think she's legit."

"Okay, let's go." Ennis said and the two of them headed out. Jack driving his truck pulling his flat-bed loaded with the last of the wire fencing; and Ennis driving their new truck.

They stopped at the house to show off their new truck and camper. Mrs. Twist was thrilled as they knew she would be.

Mr. Twist wouldn't go near it. "So how much did it cost you?" He asked giving it a brief glance. "That's all you need – another vehicle. You never did have a damn bit a sense when it came to handlin money. Whatever you got in that divorce settlement is probably all used up by now. How you figure on makin the payments? Don't come askin your momma or me for a loan. It ain't gonna happen."

"Oh, before I forget it; Mollie called." Mrs. Twist said. "She says to tell you she decided to take you up on your offer to fix her roof in exchange for that stove. I've seen that stove in her store. It's just beautiful!"

"Thanks, Momma." We'll talk to her and set up a time to get started on it." Jack said.

They headed on home.

Ennis sat at the table working on his notebook while Jack got dinner started. He browned the chicken, turned the fire down low, added some potatoes, carrots, and a can of chicken broth, then set it to simmer, before joining Ennis at the table. He pulled his chair around beside Ennis and asked, "What're you workin on?"

"I was wonderin." Ennis said. "How serious was your dad about us not usin the barn? You think he'd change his mind if we offered him a bribe?"

"What do we need the barn for?" Jack asked. "It's a real mess. Hasn't been cleaned out in years."

"I could tell that by the smell when we was in there gettin the log splitter." Ennis said. "I was thinkin we need it for two reasons. First, all we had so far is a couple a light rain showers and the horses have been fine with that tarp shelter we fixed up for 'em. But if a big storm was to come along, it'd be nice if we had a place for them out a the weather."

"And the second reason?" Jack asked.

"I really liked some a that furniture in that house today, but we got no place to store it." Ennis said.

"Which furniture are you talkin about? That huge brass bed in the master bedroom?" Jack asked with a grin.

"Nope." Ennis shook his head. "That thing's too gaudy. What I liked was that couch and the dinin room table and chairs, and the china cabinet. I think all a that would work in our cabin. What do you think?"

"I liked it too. A lot." Jack said. "What did you have in mind to offer him as a bribe?"

"We know he likes his TV, and the one he has is that small portable on wheels. What if we was to give him that big TV from the Mills house? You think he might ease up a little and agree to let us use part a the barn? We could also promise to clean the whole barn out for him. What do you think?"

"He does love his TV evenings." Jack said. "He might just go for a deal like that."

"Another thing I was thinkin. Remember the other day when Victor was sayin he needed to find some bunk beds for his boys? Maybe he'd be willin to come out and do the plumbin in our foundation for us in exchange for those bunk beds and matching chests. You think he might be interested in a deal like that?"

"I don't know." Jack said. "It'd be a good deal for him. I'm sure he could get the plumbin done in a day. I didn't get a close look at those bunk beds, but everythin else seemed like it was in real good shape. Those beds probably are too."

"I wonder if Mr. Elliot or any of the other guys need any furniture?" Ennis said. "It would be great if we could get them out to help – at least with the roof framin. You and me could do it ourselves, but it would really go a lot faster if we had a little help."

"It'd be especially good if they'd help in exchange for some of that furniture. That way, they could come get it, and it would be that much less that we'd have to haul off." Jack added.

"That's what I was thinkin." Ennis said. "First though, we need to see if we can swing another deal with your dad."

"It's worth a try." Jack said. "Lets go talk with him after supper. He might be willin to deal if he's just had a good meal in him."

"You're too late. Supper's over." Mr. Twist said as they walked into the kitchen and caught him having an after dinner cup of coffee.

"We already ate. We come to see if you were maybe interested in doin another deal with us." Jack said as he and Ennis sat down at the kitchen table.

"If you're needin cash money, you're shit out a luck." The old man said.

"Nope; we don't need your money, Dad. We come to negotiate the use of part of the barn."

"I already told you, that barn is off limits to the two a you." Mr. Twist said.

"What if we was to give you somethin in trade for the use of it; a great big TV?" Jack asked.

"Is it stolen?" The old man asked.

"No, Dad. It's not stolen. We ain't out stealin stuff. We got hooked up with this nutty rich gal. She's the one who wanted all the trees taken down off a her property, and all the wire fencin taken down. That's how we got all that great fencin. It seems she inherited the place from her grandfather. She's plannin on fixin up the house and she asked us if we would haul away all the junk furniture inside. In return, she give us that pickup. I guess it was beneath her since it was a Ford. We agreed to the deal. When we went inside to look at the furniture we figured we'd be haulin to the dump, but it turned out it's real nice stuff. There's not a thing wrong with it. And there's this big TV in the livin room. We got no electricity so we don't need it. What we do need is a place to store some a the stuff that we do want and some building supplies."

"Like what?" The old man asked.

"The couch, the dinin room table, chairs, and china cabinet. And whatever else we decide we want to keep. But the TV would be yours if you agree to let us use part a the barn. We'd be willin to clean the entire barn out for you, and we'd like to be able to use a couple a the stalls durin bad weather. We been workin night and day, seven days a week since we been here and we're not gonna have time to get a barn up as well as finish our cabin; and our horses are gonna need protection from the weather. "What do you think? Would you like a big TV? We'd do a real good job a cleanin out the barn. You could watch over us while we're doin it if you want to, to make sure we don't take nothin."

"Hmmm" The old man said as he sat and thought about it. "When you gonna go fishin again? We could use some more a those fish."

"Soon as we can get some free time." Jack said.

"What about this weekend?" The old man prodded.

"We're puttin a new roof on over at Molly's Corner antique store." Jack answered.

"I hope you're gettin paid for it." The old man said. "Them roofers charge an arm and a leg."

"She's payin for the supplies and we're doin the labor in exchange for a cast iron cook stove." Jack said.

"She got you there. I bet it's a rusted up mess. What're you plannin doin with it; soakin it in vinegar?" He gave a little chuckle, pleased with his joke. You're not very good at makin deals; are you?"

They were all quiet a while before Mr. Twist got up from the table. "You bring me that TV and we'll see if it even works. Then maybe we'll talk again. And don't forget about them fish."

"So is that a maybe, a we'll see, or what?" Ennis asked.

"I'd say it's a definite maybe." Jack said and his mom shook her head in agreement.

"Are you sure that TV works?" She asked as she joined the two of them at the table. "I think he'll agree to it if you got a big TV that works. I think he'd really like it."

"Well, we didn't try it out when we was there. Didn't want to take the time." Ennis said.

"We got nothin planned for tomorrow after work." Jack said. "Why don't you come over to Rocky Point with us and have a look around. Maybe you might find somethin you'd like."

"Oh, I couldn't." She said, but the excitement in her eyes was evident.

"Sure you could, Momma. It's not but a thirty minute drive. We'll just go over and pick the TV up and come right back. While we're loadin the TV up, you can have a look around."

"You think it would be all right?" She asked.

"Absolutely." Ennis and Jack both said.

"Oh, it's lovely!" Mrs. Twist said looking at the TV the next day after work. "It's the biggest TV I've ever seen."

"Let's hope it works." Jack said as he used the remote and turned it on. He flipped through several channels, getting a great picture on every one.

"Your dad will _love_ this. I just know he will." She said. "And that nice cabinet it's sittin on; does that go along with it?"

"Sure." Jack said, looking to Ennis for a nod. "Looks like it's got a VCR player too." He opened the cabinet to find it filled with VCR tapes. "Lots a movies! Dad should like that."

"I'm sure he'll love it!" She said happily. There was nothing she liked better than to see both her son and husband happy.

Ennis and Jack disconnected the TV, wrapped it in a blanket and carried it out to the truck; then came back in and got the cabinet it had been sitting on and carried it out as well.

"You didn't get much of a chance to look around, Momma." Jack said. "Why don't you come with us again tomorrow?"

"If you're sure it's okay?" She said.

"Positive!" Jack assured her.

"Okay. I'd like that. Now I wanna talk about this barn deal." She said as they got in the truck and headed home.

"What about it, Momma?" Jack asked.

"He's not gonna give you no more of it than he absolutely has to; you know that; don't you?"

"For this nice TV we're bringin him, I figured we ought to get at least a third of it." Jack said.

"Ask for half. If he throws a fit you can always bargain down to a third." She said. "If he gets real nasty about it, remind him that you own a third of it already, and don't forget to mention that you paid for that new roof on it a couple years ago."

"That's right, I did." Jack grinned. "I'm glad you reminded me of that."

"Just don't go agreein to anythin less than a third." She said. "It's not like he's usin it. It won't be puttin him out in any way."

The old man's eyes nearly came out of his head when he saw the TV, but he worked hard at not being impressed.

"What do you think, Dad?" Jack asked as they were setting it up and connecting it to their roof antenna.

"Well it's big all right. Let's see if it works. Otherwise it ain't nothin but a doorstop." The old man said.

Jack flipped it on, went though all the channels, most of which came on perfectly, then handed the remote to his dad.

Mr. Twist took his turn flipping through the channels before asking, "I ain't seen no fish yet. I s'pose you think I forgot about that part a our deal."

"We'll get you some more fish, Dad. Soon as we get a chance." Jack said exasperated.

"All right." The old man said tossing the remote down on the table next to his favorite chair. "I guess I'll have to trust you on that one. You can use the back corner to store your stuff in and the two back stalls."

"Uh uh." Jack said with a shake of his head. "We want half."

"Half?" The old man said with disgust. "You're dreamin. You get just what I said or the deal's off."

"Okay." Jack said and bent down and began unhooking the TV from the antenna. "We'll just store this TV until we get out place up."

"Now wait just a damn minute here." The old man steamed. "You already give me that TV. You can't take it back."

"The hell I can't!" Jack said and continued unhooking it.

"Well... maybe you can use a bit more space." The old man mumbled.

"Half!" Jack insisted. "I already own a third of it legally and can take that much any time I want without havin to ask. It ain't like you're usin any of it but that small area your work bench is in. And if you remember, it was me who paid for that new roof on the barn as well as the roof on this house!"

Ennis was impressed that Jack was standing up to the old man. From the look on Mrs. Twist's face, she was impressed as well he noticed.

"All right, all right – half. But I say where the dividin line goes and if I catch either a you on my side a the line, the deal is off!" The old man stormed.

"The dividin line will be exactly half – where ever the tape measure says that is." Jack said. "And how do you expect us to clean your half a the barn if we ain't allowed over there?"

"I don't want you cleanin my half." The old man said. "If I wanted it cleaned, I can clean it myself. I catch either of you on my side, the deal is off!"

"You call the deal off, we take the TV back." Ennis offered his two cents into the deal. "And there will be no more fish!"

The old man scowled at them, cursed under his breath. "Go get your tape measure. Woman go get me some chalk. I wanna mark it so there ain't any mistakes."

They measured the barn and marked the exact halfway point on both sides, giving them a good twenty foot of area. The half-way point came down in the middle of the small sink that was next to the old man's work bench.

"That sink is on my side. You can't use it." The old man said.

"The line comes down right in the middle of it. We sure as hell are too going to use it!" Jack insisted.

"The faucet is on my side!" The old man yelled.

"One of 'em is, the other is on my side." Jack yelled just as loud. "We're gonna use it whenever we need to!"

The old man kicked an empty oil can over onto their side and stalked out of the barn.

Jack looked over to Ennis to get his reaction.

"Good job, Bud." Ennis said with a little bit of a smile. "That old man don't know it yet, but he don't control this ranch no more. Just his little bit of it."

"It's long since time I stood up to him." Jack said lighting a cigarette and inhaling deeply. "I ain't a kid no more he can boss around, and I ain't the busted up rodeo bull rider come home to free-load. This ranch is rightfully one-third mine and I'm takin it."

They had a few hours of daylight left so they spent it clearing out their half of the barn.

"You did real good, Bud." Ennis said when they were done. "This is a lot more space than I figured we'd end up with.

"Well, I got tired a him actin like an ass about it." Jack said. "If he was usin it, it'd be a different story, but he ain't used it since he got rid a all the horses a while back. "And now we got us four stalls; two on either side."

"Not hardly." Ennis said. "These stalls are too small and those on the other side are in such bad shape, they ain't much more than scrap lumber."

"You don't think they can be fixed up?" Jack asked.

"Fixed up for firewood maybe." Ennis grunted. "We need to tear all four of 'em out. On this side, we'll build back just one good sized one that both horses can use. They'll be a lot more comfortable if they got a little room to move around in."

"If we had more light we could keep on workin." Jack said.

"Yeah." Ennis agreed looking at the one light bulb that hung in the exact middle of the ceiling. "What size is that thing anyway, a forty watt?"

"Don't know." Jack admitted. "It could be a hundred for all I know. It's so covered with dirt it's hard to tell."

"Next time we're in town we'll pick up a shop light." Ennis said. "They give off more light."

"Dad will probably scream bloody murder." Jack grinned.

"He'll still have his light bulb. We can even leave it dirty if you want to." Ennis said. "What we'll do is change out the base to one that has two sockets. One socket we'll put his bulb back in, the other we'll use one a those adapters that has a plug-in for our shop light and we'll use a pull chain to turn ours on and off."

"That ought to work." Jack agreed.

With that decision made, they called it a night and headed home.

CHAPTER FIVE

Jack told the story of their house full of furniture that they needed to get rid of and asked the guys at work the next morning if they'd be interested in some free furniture in exchange for a little help on their cabin.

Victor, the company's main plumber said he was definitely interested in the bunk beds Jack described. Being a divorced father of two young boys, he had his own small two-bedroom apartment, but his boys only had mattresses on the floor that they were sleeping on now. He agreed immediately to the deal.

The others were only vaguely interested in the furniture, but were more interested in getting a chance to see this cabin that Jack and Ennis had been talking about since they came to work there. All agreed to making the trip to Lightning Flat the weekend after next. After Jack explained that they were going to be doing a roof for someone the coming weekend.

They spent evenings the next week pouring concrete for the rest of the cabin and getting the four-by-four framing up; also managing to get the first four rows of logs installed on what was to be the living room – which was exactly two feet up all around.

The roofing job at the antique store went as they expected. Their only problem with it was the constant wind. They were aware of the danger it provided so they were extra careful. Luckily, the only place the decking needed to be replaced was right where the leak was so the job was mostly re-shingling. Once the job was finished and the mess cleaned up, they headed on home to rest.

The next day they loaded up their two large ice chests and went fishing. This time they caught their limit. They carried one chest into the Twist kitchen and dumped it in the sink.

"There you go, Dad. All ten are yours." Jack said glad to have their debt fulfilled.

"Ten? I want twenty." He growled. "I said twenty fish!"

"No you didn't!" Jack insisted. "You just said fish. You never said how many."

"Yes, I did too!" The old man howled back at him.

"All right!" Ennis stepped in between the two of them. "He says he wants twenty, we'll get him twenty." He said to Jack, then turned to Mr. Twist and said, "We'll get you another ten next time we go fishin. If we don't have to work, that'll be next weekend. Fair enough?"

"Huh!" The old man huffed. "They better be as big as these here, and not some tiny things. Or the deal's off."

"We'll let you have the pick of whatever we catch." Ennis said.

"Just remember, Dad. If this deal gets called off, we take that TV back!" Jack warned as they left.

"John, I don't know why you have to be so hateful." Mrs. Twist said. "They're tryin their very best to please you."

"That'll be the day!" The old man said in disgust as he left the room.

By the next weekend they had another six rows of logs up around the living room, chinked, and bolted in place. The walls now were up six feet, with the windows and doors framed in; and the fireplace was started.

They had decided to use some of that big check to have a septic tank put in while he had the volunteers to help. Saturday morning they met the guys at the Texaco gas station in Lightning Flat and led them out to the ranch. They hadn't really expected them all to show, but they did. Bringing with them a caravan of trucks and equipment.

They rumbled passed the house and out across the fields to the back woods, and began their work. Some working on the septic system, digging the huge hole; others worked on installing the pipeline from the pump out to the cabin using their trencher they brought. And some set to work lifting the large four-by-fours up over head for the roof frame. Mr. Elliott brought along his huge tow-able bar-be-cue and set about fixing some ribs for lunch. It was just after lunch when the cops showed up catching them all sitting around drinking coffee.

The car with the flashing red and blue lights drove out back surprising them all.

"Who's in charge here?" The young officer in charge demanded.

"That'd be me, Officer." Jack stood up and greeted him. "I'm Jack Twist. Is there a problem?"

"We got a report there was a drunken, sex party goin on back here." The officer said as he looked around.

"What?" Mr. Elliott said with fake indignation. "And we weren't invited?" The group all snickered.

"Sex party?" Jack asked, dumbfounded. "Here?"

"Does it look like we're havin a sex party?" Ennis asked.

"They're all drinkin! Every one of 'em." The old man spoke up as he climbed out of the back seat of the patrol car. "No tellin what they were doin before we got here."

"Ahh You got some I.D. on you?" The flustered officer asked Jack. "The rest a you too. I'll need to see I.D. on all a you."

"Sure thing." Jack said and pulled out his wallet. The rest of the group did the same.

"Officer, there must be some mistake here." Mr. Elliott explained. "I'm Frank Elliott with Elliott's Construction Company, and this is my crew." He pointed to his truck with his name on the side. "We're just here workin on the cabin. If there's some sex party goin on around here; we don't know nothin about it."

"Ask him what he's drinkin!" Mr. Twist insisted. "Betcha it's whiskey! I can smell it!"

The officer reached out his hand and Frank handed over his cup he'd been drinking from.

The officer smelled it. "It's coffee." He announced.

"Well they must a hid the good stuff when they heard us comin for 'em." The old man said. "It don't matter none. They're on my property without my permission and I want 'em thrown off!"

"I don't see any cabin." The officer said.

"It's in the woods." Jack said with a nod and showed them into the woods and beyond to the clearing where their campsite was.

The two officers walked around looking at everything. "Is that old man your father?" One of them asked Jack.

"Yep. Unfortunately." Jack answered.

"Well he called in sayin you were having a wild, drunken, sex party out here. Is he a little nutty or what?"

About that time the old man came into the clearing. "I give him permission to set up a tent out here and and camp for a bit. Next thing I know he's buildin a cabin! He got no right to do that on my land. I want you to throw him and all his drunken friends off a my place!"

"Sir; he's your son. You got no call to throw him out a here." The officer in charge said.

"This is _my _ranch and I'll say who stays and who goes!" He shouted at the officers who looked helplessly at Jack.

"Dad – you know good and well that I own one third a this ranch and I ain't usin no more than that."

"**I want him and all his drunken sex fiends off a my property, and I want 'em off now!"** The old man shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Um... you got any proof you own one third a this ranch?" The officer in charge asked Jack.

"I do; but it's in my pickup." Jack said and led them back out to where all the vehicles were parked.

The junior officer who didn't look a day over sixteen, but was probably in his early twenties, stood back with the others.

"Would it be all right if we got back to work while they're sortin out the paperwork?" Frank asked him.

"Um... I guess it would be okay." He said, looking for his partner who was reading some papers that Jack had given to him. "As long as there's no drinkin goin on."

"Son; in construction work there is no drinkin of anythin stronger than coffee." Frank said. "Would you like a cup while you're waitin?"

"A... no thanks. We're not allowed to accept anythin when we're out on a call."

"You see the date on that piece a paper." The old man was railing at the officer. "That was writ up, like forty five year ago. Now take a look at this and the date on it." He pulled out a folded up piece of paper out of his pocket. "This here is the deed to my ranch; and look at that date. It was writ just a couple months ago!"

Jack looked at the paper along with the officer. It was indeed a title saying that John Twist was the sole owner of the property known as the Twist ranch.

"That looks to me like a copy of a copy of a copy." Jack said. "Who'd you get to make that up for you, Dad?"

"It does look like a copy." The officer agreed.

"A course it's a copy. You think I carry the real thing around in my pants pocket!" Mr. Twist said.

"Is the original up at the house?" The officer asked him.

"Um... no. My lawyer has it." The old man said.

"The copy your son has of his grandfather's will clearly states that one third of the property is his and one third his mother's. How did you manage to get title to the entire place?" The officer asked.

"Yeah." Jack said. "I'd like to hear the answer to that one myself."

"When Jack was a kid, he got into a lot a trouble. I had to bail him out – pay off his debts. In return he signed over his rights to the property to me."

"That's a lie!" Jack was outraged. "I never got into any trouble, and I never signed no papers givin my third of the ranch over to him."

"I suppose if he got into any trouble, there would be a record of it down at the station?" The officer asked. "I could call in and find out."

"It wasn't reported. I paid the family off, and the Mrs. signed over her share to me so I'd keep it quiet and Jackie wouldn't go to jail." The old man lied through his teeth.

The officer asked. "Can you give me the name of the family involved?" The officer asked.

"Nope. I can't. That was part a the deal." Mr. Twist continued his lie.

"And all this... trouble, happened when?" The officer asked.

"When he was a kid. Just before he run off and joined the rodeo." The old man said.

"And he was how old?" The officer asked as he made notes in his notebook.

"I was fifteen when I left for the rodeo." Jack said angrily.

"That right?" The officer asked.

"Nah." Mr. Twist said, seeing where this questioning was headed. "He was eighteen. Old enough to sign legal papers."

"Dad!" Jack was appalled. "Why you lyin like this? You know all they gotta do is wait till Momma comes home and ask her. She's gonna tell 'em the truth and you're gonna look like a fool!"

"It's you and your friends gonna look like fools when these officers throw you out on your asses!" The old man shouted back. "You best pack up that tent a yours and head on out a here before she gets back. No sense in puttin her through a mess like this. Now git."

Just then Mrs. Twist drove up. "Land sakes!" She said as she walked over to them. "What's goin on here? Someone get hurt?"

"What're you doin here!" The old man yelled at her. "You was supposed to be gone all day!"

"Can someone please tell me what's been goin on?" She asked lookin from Jack to the police officer.

"Jackie's makin up a bunch a lies, is all." The old man said. "Now you go on back to the house and I'll take care a this."

"Oh no you won't!" She glared at him. "Jackie doesn't lie!"

"I said go on back to the house now. I'll take care a this!" The old man raised his voice again.

"Officer, I'm Roberta Twist. Can you please tell me what's goin on here?" She brushed past her husband and asked the officer.

"Aw, the hell with it!" The old man said and headed back to the house.

Mrs. Twist spent the next hour sitting in the Patrol car talking with the two officers before finally getting out and watching as they drove away.

"Son, Ennis," Mrs. Twist said as she walked over to Jack and Ennis. "I've explained everythin to the officers. What I need to do is see my old friend, Donald Reeves tomorrow. He's an attorney in Gillette now. He'll straighten this all out. I don't know how your father came up with that deed sayin he's the sole owner a this place. It ain't true and I don't want the two a you to worry none about it."

"Tomorrow's Sunday, Momma." Jack said. "He won't be in his office."

"I know. But he'll be in church tomorrow mornin. I'll see him then and explain what happened this afternoon. He'll get things straightened out for us." She said and turned and left.

"Is your old man completely nuts or what?" Frank asked.

"Don't know the answer to that." Jack said. "If he ain't, I'd say he's pretty close to it."

They worked a little while longer before stopping. The septic tank was in, the roof framing was up, the water line was run and the plumbing in the foundation was finished. It was time to call it a day. "That's enough work for today." Jack said. "Let's take a run over to Rocky Point and you can take a look at the furniture; see if there's anythin you might want before we haul most of it over to the antique store."

"We're keepin the couch, the dining room table and chairs, the china cabinet and the small desk up on the second floor." Ennis said as the men fanned out and went through the house.

Jack led the way upstairs so that Victor could see the bunk beds. He was thrilled with them and got help from one of the other guys to take them apart and carry them and the two matching chests down to his pickup.

"I really wasn't plannin on takin anythin." Frank said. "But I really love this recliner."

"It's yours if you want it." Ennis told him. "We really appreciate all the work you done for us today, feedin us and all. You're welcome to take both recliners if you want 'em."

"How about that small kitchen table and four chairs." Wayne, Victor's plumbing helper asked. "Has anyone asked for that yet?"

"Nope." Ennis answered. "Unless Jack has given it to anyone."

Jack was just coming down the stairs carrying a bunk bed mattress.

"Hey, Jack. You promise that small kitchen table and chairs to anyone?" Ennis asked.

"Nope." Jack answered as he went out the front door.

"The set's yours, Wayne." Ennis said and helped him carry it out to his truck.

Frank was hauling his recliner out to his truck when Ennis got back inside.

"Hot dog!" Jack exclaimed as he came back inside and saw the furniture going out. "Look at all that furniture that the two of us _won't _have to move!"

Ennis grinned. "I was thinkin the same thing."

"What about this?" Billy their electrician said as he came down the stairs. "I know you said furniture, but are you wantin to get rid of this old guitar too?"

"Sure enough." Ennis said.

"Where'd you find that?" Jack asked. "I don't remember seein no guitar."

"In the attic." Billy said. "Or weren't we supposed to go in the attic?"

"Attic?" Jack said and looked at Ennis. "I didn't know there was an attic; did you?"

"Nope." Ennis said with a shrug. "Anythin else good up there?"

"I don't know." Billy said. "Lot's a boxes and junk. I saw this though, and I've been wantin to take lessons for a couple a years now, but I didn't have a guitar. You sure it's all right to take it?"

"Positive, Billy." Jack said. "It's yours."

In less than an hour everyone was loaded up and headed home; everyone found something that they liked. Jack and Ennis stood on the porch smoking a cigarette after they left.

"You know what I was thinkin?" Ennis asked.

"What?" Jack asked.

"I'm thinkin we missed the attic cause we didn't go lookin for one. I'm wonderin now if there ain't a cellar. Did you see a door anywhere around the kitchen?"

"Just the one to the back porch; but like you said, I wasn't lookin for no cellar." Jack said.

The two of them tossed their cigarettes and headed back inside. They looked all through the kitchen and didn't find any doors that might have led to a cellar.

"There must be one." Ennis said after looking over the back porch.

"Some houses don't have one." Jack said.

"I know; but where do you suppose these folks did their laundry?" Ennis asked. "I don't see no washin machine."

Jack thought about it a minute and said, "The door to the folks cellar ain't in the kitchen."

"It's under the stairs." They both said at the same time before taking off for the hallway.

"Did you check that door?" Jack asked as they came to a door under the stairway.

"Nope. I figured it was a closet. We ain't spent enough time here to go through the closets." Ennis said.

Jack reached for the door knob and opened it. Bingo! Steps leading to the cellar. He switched the light on and the two of them headed down the stairs.

"Holy cow!" Jack said as they turned the corner and saw all the shiny white appliances. "Maybe the guy owned an appliance store."

"Nah." Ennis said as he checked them out. "These four freezers; the biggest I ever seen. Look, he's got 'em labeled -one for beef, this one for pork, one for chicken and that one is for fruit. Smart guy."

"They're all empty." Jack noticed opening each one.

"Probably didn't need 'em once he got older. Family was probably all grown and gone." Ennis suggested.

"They don't look all that old though." Jack said.

"True." Ennis agreed as he checked out the washer and dryer sitting nearby. "We got ourselves a bunch a appliances if we ever get any electricity."

"Yeah, and now we have a place to store 'em." Jack said.

"That'd give us six freezers." Ennis said. "That'd give us one for fruit, one for vegetables, and the other four for meat."

"We get 'em all filled, we won't have to worry none about makin it through the winter." Jack said.

"We ain't got no place to plug in these four, Jack." Ennis reminded him. "We plug 'em in, in the barn and you're dad will have a fit."

"I been thinkin about somethin better than that." Jack said.

"What?" Ennis asked.

"You know those put-together sheds? Why don't we get one for the pump house? We been talkin about fixin us somethin better than that pile a cinder-blocks that dad put up, every since we got here. We build one right around the pump since it's got electricity there, and we could set these four freezes up in there." Jack suggested.

"And the electricity?" Ennis asked.

"We're already payin however much it raises from last year. This won't be any different." Jack reasoned. "Sure, it will cost a little more, but it'd be worth it."

"We get one big enough, we could move the freezes out a your folks cellar." Ennis said. "Then we wouldn't have to go over there to get at our meat or ice." The more he thought about it, the more he liked the idea. "Them sheds aren't cheap." Ennis reminded him.

"I know, but we still got a lot a that big check left over even after puttin in the septic tank and water line. I still think it would be worth it." Jack said.

"It's somethin to think about." Ennis said as they came back up the stairs. "Let's get on home and get dinner started. You said you wanted stew tonight and that takes a couple hours at least."

"Sounds good to me." Jack said. "I got an idea what we can do with the rest a that furniture."

"What?" Ennis asked.

"I noticed in that study there was a Polaroid camera and some extra film. I think we should take photos a the rest a that furniture and show it to our three antique ladies and see if they have any interest in tryin to sell any of it for us."

"Good idea." Ennis said. "What about the rest of it – the stuff they don't want?"

"I figure we can haul it in to Gillette to the used furniture store and see if they want it. What they don't want, we can take over to Goodwill." Jack said. "What do you think?"

"I like it." Ennis said. "And maybe if the antique ladies want any a it; they'll loan us their truck."

"That's good." Jack said. "I was thinkin we'd have to rent a truck; but if we can get the delivery truck the antique ladies have in trade for somethin, that'd save us some money."

"That's what I was thinkin." Ennis said. "Tomorrow after work, let's take some photos and go see the antique ladies next day at lunch."

CHAPTER SIX

They stopped at the house to check on Mrs. Twist. She was in the kitchen goin through her recipe book. She was just fine. She said that she and Mr. Twist had, had words, but everything was just fine now. As they were leaving the house, Ennis stopped and sniffed the air.

"What?" Jack asked.

"Rain." Ennis said. "A storm is comin." He got in the truck and they drove on out back. When he got out of the truck he stood still again looking all around.

"All the tools have been put away. Everything should be all right." Jack said.

"It don't feel right." Ennis said as he paced a bit. The wind got up a little then and Ennis got another good sniff. "It's gonna be a bad one, Jack."

Jack looked around and sniffed he air himself. "I don't smell nothin, Cowboy; and the sky is blue as it can be."

"It's comin, Jack." Ennis insisted. "And it's comin from all around. The north, the east, and even some from the west. I'm gonna put the horses in the barn."

Jack looked around nervously. He didn't smell a thing, and certainly didn't 'feel' anything, but he knew Ennis well enough not to question him. If Ennis said a storm was coming, it was good enough for him.

Mr. Twist was in the barn tinkering at his workbench when they came in with the horses.

"Storm's comin, Dad." Jack said as they filled the water pans for the horses and put some feed out for them.

Mr. Twist walked outside and looked at the sky. "You're crazy! There ain't a cloud in the sky."

"Let's just go." Ennis said. He didn't want to get into any long drawn out argument with the old man and he could tell that was just what Jack was aiming to do. "We need to get back to camp and make sure the tent is secure."

They left and hurried back.

"What more can we do?" Jack asked when they got there.

"Those rocks we got for the fireplace." Ennis said. "Help me put 'em around the edges of the tent on the inside. It'll help weight it down."

They loaded up the wheelbarrow and drove it up to the kitchen door. Ennis dumped it there and went back for more. "Start spreadin it around the walls a the tent." He told Jack. Soon he was back with another load and dumped it in the doorway as well. He then took the wheelbarrow over and tied it to a tree before heading back inside to help Jack.

They were still spreading the stones when the rain started coming down in great big drops.

"Put anythin breakable away." He warned Jack. "It's gonna be a bad one. I can tell."

He was right as the news reports for the next several days would claim it to be the worst storm for thirty-five years on that date.

The storm raged, thunder and lightning and wind buffeting the tent so badly that Ennis insisted they stay by the doorway in case it collapsed so they would be able to find their way out. They covered themselves with their sleeping bags for protection and hunkered down until the storm passed many hours later. They awoke clinging to one another as the cool gray light of dawn approached. Slowly they got to their feet and checked each other out to make sure they were okay.

The tent was a wreck. Part of it was down. The front kitchen area was flapping in the morning breeze, hanging on at the point where the zipper had gotten stuck.

"You think it was a tornado?" Jack asked as they surveyed their debris scattered campsite.

"I don't know." Ennis said as they stood in front of their cabin that appeared untouched by the storm. "But it's gone now. We best get up to the house and check on your folks."

They made their way to the truck, shoving limbs out of the way. They drove over branches and into puddles but they made it only to find a downed tree blocking the front door. They went around to the kitchen door, relieved to find Mrs. Twist busy making coffee, and Mr. Twist sitting patiently at the table waiting for his breakfast.

"You both all right?" Jack asked as they came through the door. "We were worried about you."

"Oh we're fine." Mrs. Twist said and came over and hugged them both. "We were worried about the two a you out there in that tent. Was it very bad out there?"

"Yeah, Momma. Part of our tent is down, part of its half blown away; but we're all right." Jack said.

"Thank the Lord." She said with a little smile. "Coffee? It'll be ready shortly."

"We'd love some." Jack said taking a seat at the table.

"I'm gonna go check on the horses." Ennis said.

"Did you know you lost that tree out front? It's layin on the ground right by the front door." Jack asked.

"Yep." The old man said. "You best get that truck and trailer a yours with the winch and pull it out a the way. It ain't nothin but firewood now. And don't forget the stump."

"We'll move the tree for you, Dad; and cut it into firewood. You can take care a the stump yourself." Jack said.

"I ain't got no winch." The old man said. "Just how you expect me to take it out?"

"Just pour that stuff on it you been usin for years." Jack said. "Let it rot and then dig it out."

Mrs. Twist set coffee down in front of both of them as they glared across the table at one another.

Ennis came in then and joined them for coffee. The horses were a bit nervous but they had made it unharmed. "Did I miss somethin?" He asked as he noticed the grim silence at the table.

Mrs. Twist placed a cup of coffee in front of him and sat down with a cup for herself. "Breakfast will be ready shortly." She said. "I'm making enough for us all. I imagine the two of you will shortly be overcome with job offers of hauling away fallen trees. Is your campsite destroyed? The offer still stands for you to move in to the upstairs."

Mr. Twist gave her a hateful look, but said nothing.

"Thanks Momma." Jack said. "We'd appreciate some breakfast. Our campsite is a mess, but it's salvageable. All we have to do is clean it up. We wanted to check on you first."

"You just see to it that you haul that tree out a the way before you get too wrapped up in takin other peoples jobs." The old man said.

"We'll haul that tree out a the way when we're good and ready." Jack said.

"How you expect me to drive your mother to church this mornin with that tree up against the back a my truck?" The old man asked angrily. "There's no way I can get it out a there until you move that tree!"

"We'll get around to it sooner or later." Jack said. "Maybe this afternoon, maybe tomorrow, or maybe next week."

"Then I'll have to borrow one a your trucks till you do." The old man said.

"Now that ain't happenin!" Jack said his voice raising. "We'll drive Momma into town so she can go to church. It'll give us a chance to see how Gillette made it through the storm."

"According to the TV, it got hit pretty hard." Mrs. Twist said as she got up to tend to breakfast. "Why don't the two a you go on in and check out the news. It's on every TV station."

Jack and Ennis got up and headed for the front room, turning on the TV and settling themselves on the couch. The news coverage was shocking. They were stunned to silence as they watched the scenes of devastation. Many homes sustained major damage; there was debris everywhere. The news man was going on and on about the 'surprise attack' by Mother Nature and how it was the worst storm anyone could remember.

Before long Mrs. Twist was calling that breakfast was ready. Jack and Ennis returned to the kitchen table and ate their scrambled eggs, bacon, toast and coffee.

"I'll be ready to leave for church in about thirty minutes." Mrs. Twist said as they got up to leave.

"If you're sure it won't be any trouble to drive me in to Gillette?"

"No trouble at all, Momma." Jack said.

"Probably won't even be havin services today. A trip into Gillette will just be a waste a gas." The old man grumbled.

"It's our gas to waste." Ennis said.

"We'll be back to pick you up in thirty minutes, Momma." Jack said as the two of them went out the door.

They did what they could to straighten their tent up. There was a long rip in the back of the main section where the ice box had been turned over. They sat the ice box upright, opening it to check on the mess inside. They returned the chunks of ice to the compartment where it belonged, and put everything else back where it belonged as well before closing the door and moving the ice box into the center of the room.

"We'll need to pick up a tent repair kit in town." Ennis said as they straightened things up.

"You think a tear that big can be repaired?" Jack asked.

"Yep." Ennis said. "It's either that or we move in with your folks. You want that?"

"NO!" Jack agreed. "We'll do whatever it takes to repair it. Or we can look around for another tent."

"We can fix this one, Jack." Ennis assured him. "Let's see if we can get that bathroom section standin again.

Outside they found that the tent supports had just folded up so it was just a matter of unfolding it again to get everything set to right. They carried all the stones back outside and piled them back where they were. It was then time to head to the house and pick up Mrs. Twist.

"Thank you so much for drivin me and for gettin here early." Mrs. Twist said as she sat between them with her bible on her lap. "I want to be sure and catch Donald before services to tell him I need to talk with him after."

"Are you finally goin to file for divorce, Momma?" Jack asked.

"I don't know yet, Son. I'll have to talk with Donald and see what he recommends." She said. "I do feel like him callin the cops on you yesterday was the last straw and I ain't gonna just let it pass. I been pressin you to stand up to him. Now it's time for me to do the same thing. Only thing stoppin me is he's got no place to go."

"That ain't your problem, Momma."

"I know; but I just feel bad about it; puttin a man out a the only home he's known for forty-five years."

She said.

"It's up to you, Momma; but for me – I ain't puttin up with no more a his nonsense."

"I don't blame you, Jackie. Not one bit." She said. "And you know I'll back you if push ever comes to shove."

"Careful Jack!" Ennis warned as they turned a corner and found a tree in the road dead ahead.

Jack slowly edged around it.

"Look at this mess!" Mrs. Twist said as they drove into town. "It's worse even than it showed on the TV."

"We can't worry about the town right now." Jack said as he pulled up in front of her church. "What time you want us to pick you up?"

"Services get out at eleven." She said. "Why don't you meet me out front about that time and I'll tell you if I'm able to get a meetin with Donald. If I do, I'll find out where he wants to meet and let you know where and when to pick me up. I can't imagine the meetin will take longer than an hour."

"Okay. We'll meet you right back here at eleven then." Jack said before heading on over to Home Depot.

They picked up two tent repair kits to make sure there was enough to repair their big tear, and drove around town. They stopped a few times to help people pull limbs off their cars or to help nail plywood over broken out windows. They decided to head on over to work to see if Frank or any of the guys had come in. Frank and a few of them were there handling phone calls. It was about all they could do for the time being. Most people had to wait for their insurance companies to come out before any work could be done.

"Got a ton a extra work scheduled for this week." Frank said. "You willin to work a little over-time?"

"Sure thing." Ennis said and Jack agreed.

"How'd your place make out? Much damage?" Frank asked.

"Tent got ripped, lots a tree limbs down everywhere; but the cabin framin is still standin." Ennis said.

"I figured it would be with all those storm ties you put on." Frank said. "That thing is gonna be solid as a rock once you get it up."

"We're countin on that." Jack said. "How about the rest a the crew? Any of 'em need any help?"

"Nah." Frank said. "They're all in pretty good shape. "Victor said there were a couple a trees down in his apartment complex. Said he recommended the two a you to come remove 'em; but they have to wait for the insurance man to come out and take a look."

"Did it fall into the building?" Jack asked.

"Nah. Just broke a couple a windows and took out some a the other landscapin." Frank said. "Victor's place didn't get hit."

"That's good." Ennis said.

"Donald, I really appreciate you agreein to meet me like this on a Sunday and right after that terrible storm we had last night." Mrs. Twist said as she sat herself in the chair in front of Attorney Donald Reeves desk.

"Anytime you need me, Bertie. You know that." He said with a sweet smile for his long-time friend.

"Well, the story I got a tell you, you just won't believe." She said with a sad shake of her head. "I wouldn't have myself if I hadn't been there."

"Just you relax now and tell me all about it." He said as he sat with his arms folded across his vast abdomen.

She went into great detail about the entire situation from the time Jack and Ennis had moved there, up to the incident that had happened the day before.

"You're right, Bertie." He said. "I don't think I would have believed such a story if it had come from anyone but you. I'm not a doctor, but if you ask me, I don't think John's right in the head. Have you ever had him checked out?"

"Oh no." She said. "He'd never allow that."

"Well, what exactly is it that you want me to do?" Donald asked.

"I need for you to check out that title he's got." She said. "Jackie said he showed the officers a title for the ranch showin him as full owner a the place."

"It's gotta be a fake, Bertie. My daddy was the one that drew up your father's will and I was workin for him at the time so I know exactly what it said. It gave John one third of the place, you one third, and any children you have, one third."

"I know! But he told the officers that he had some papers sayin that Jackie and I turned our shares over to him. How can that be when neither Jackie nor I ever signed no such papers?"

"If he got a new title with such papers, it would have to be filed with the court. I'll check and see if anythin has been filed on the ranch that could change the ownership." He said. "Anythin else? You about ready to file on him yet?"

"Yes," She said, a little overwhelmed by it all. "I think it's time."

"All right." Donald said and took a yellow legal pad out of his drawer and began taking notes. After taking down the information he needed he added, "You've got more than enough grounds for divorce, Bertie. There shouldn't be any problem."

"I just want you to draw them up for now. I don't wanna file 'em just yet." She said.

"Bertie! You're not gonna back down now that you've finally gotten all the grounds you need; are you?"

"I'm almost there, Donald." She said. "I'll know when the time is right to file them. First of all, I want to concentrate on gettin this deed thing straightened out. I want a deed in my hand sayin what my daddy wanted it to say."

"You go through with the divorce and John will be out a the picture entirely. He won't own any part of the ranch any more. It'll belong completely to you and Jackie." Donald reminded her.

"Yes; I know." She said. "I'm just not quite ready to throw him out in the street yet. If he had some place to go, it would be different; but he has no relatives, no close friends, absolutely no where to go. He's seventy years old, Donald. Where would he go? He's too old to find work. How would he live?"

"That's nothin for you to worry about, Bertie. That'd be his problem; not yours."

"I know." She said. "And even though I think he'd readily throw Jackie and me off the property; I can't find it in my heart to do it to him. At least not yet."

"The decision's yours, of course." Donald said and stood to escort her to the door.

"The deed first, Donald. Then the divorce papers." She said as she walked outside with him beside her. "I want those all those papers in my hands. Maybe once he sees that I'm not going to put up with any more a his nonsense; he might straighten up."

"You really see that happenin?" Donald asked.

"It's the only way I can handle this, Donald." She said. "I just don't have it in me to toss a man out in the cold without givin him a chance."

Jack and Ennis drove up then and parked.

"All right, Bertie. We'll do it your way. I should have somethin for you in a few days. I'll call you."

"Thanks Donald. You're a real sweetheart." She leaned up and gave him a peck on the cheek before joining Jack and Ennis for the ride home.

"It's about time you got home." The old man said. "That damn phone's been ringin off the wall! Can't hardly hear my TV for its squallin."

"Well did you answer it? Take a message?" Jack asked as he and Ennis walked his momma inside to make sure everythin was okay.

"Hell no! I ain't your secretary!" The old man said. "You might have your momma at your beck and call, but don't think that's gonna happen with me!"

"Don't worry about it, Son. I'll get busy and take messages and get them out to you shortly. You just get on with gettin your tent fixed up."

"Don't forget to get that tree hauled away from the back a my truck!" Mr. Twist called after them as they went out the kitchen door.

It didn't take too long to repair the tent. Within an hour they had it stitched closed and the waterproof gunk spread over the split inside and out.

"We might as well get some work done on our cabin before we have to see to the phone calls." Ennis said. "Let's get a few rows of stones up on our fireplace."

They worked for about two hours before Mrs. Twist drove up. She had sixteen messages. All for tree removals.

"This storm may have given us the rest of the trees we needed to get our cabin finished." Ennis said as they flipped through the messages.

"I've been tellin everyone who calls what you said. That you don't do trees close to power lines, or buildings." Mrs. Twist said. "There are a few that are close to houses, but those trees are already down and just need to be hauled away so I thought you might be interested in those; and some that are quite old and big that are down that I thought you might be able to use for firewood. I explained about the stumps."

"Thanks, Momma. We'll get to 'em soon as we can." Jack said.

"You know what we need?" Jack asked after his momma left. "We need to get some walkie-talkies. We could give Momma one and she wouldn't have to come all the way back here to give us our messages."

"That's a good idea." Ennis said.

"And she could give us a call if Dad got out a hand."

"How much they cost?" Ennis asked.

"They got 'em all prices, but I got Bobby a real nice set for Christmas a couple years ago. I think I paid about a hundred dollars for 'em. They're supposed to transmit up to thirty miles."

"You think we could find some in Gillette?" Ennis asked.

"Probably. I got 'em at Radio Shack and I seen one in downtown Gillette." Jack said.

"Good deal. Next time we hit town, we'll get some." Ennis agreed with a smile. He knew how important it was for Jack to be able to check on his momma, and he didn't blame him one bit. Not after getting to know what a nut his Dad is.

They worked right up until dark that Sunday night, and every night for the rest of the week coming home every night with a trailer full of trees. The next weekend was spent cutting logs for their cabin, and cord after cord of firewood. They had filled Mr. Twist's request and had started a good sized stack of their own.

They bought and put together a ten foot by ten foot shed around the pump and moved all of their freezers into it – the two they already had, and the four from the Mills house. That brought about the first row they had with the old man since the police incident. Jack had locked the pump house up tight and the old man insisted on having a key. There was no way they were going to give him a key and told him if he needed to get into the shed, he could ask one of them and they would accompany him. He didn't like that one bit. The argument ended with the old man skulking off to the house, grumbling and cursing as he went.

They were all set now for hunting season come September. Their garden was growing well and they were enjoying fresh vegetables from it every day. Mrs. Twist came out and talked to them about freezing their extra. She gave them a little booklet she had explaining how to do it. They were glad they kept the several boxes of canning jars they had found in the Mills basement. They were going to need them.

(May/June 1984)

The three antique store ladies, who were life-long friends, loaned them their one delivery truck that they shared between them, and all the furniture was removed from the Mills house. They divided up the antiques among them, and the rest of the furniture was sold to the used furniture dealer in Gillette.

A lot of time was spent making deliveries for the three antique stores. Money was coming in for the furniture they had given them on consignment and they turned around and spent it on furniture and fixtures for the cabin. Two almost identical Hoosier kitchen cabinets for their kitchen – both completely redone in golden oak matching their ice box – and a farmhouse sink to sit in between. A small wardrobe with wire shelves from an old refrigerator made a perfect pantry for them. One of the shops had a huge old fashioned claw-foot bath tub that they put on lay-away. Twin pedestal antique sinks for their bathroom were found along with an old toilet at a used fixtures place someone recommended to them in Sheridan. The cabin was coning along nicely, their work with Elliott's Construction was steady and full time. They were almost ready to move in. Almost.

The last week of May brought a frantic call from Charlene Mills at Rocky Point. Her painter had suffered a death in the family and wouldn't be able to do the job. All the paint and supplies had been delivered, but she needed painters – desperately. She was willing to pay two hundred a room, plus another thousand to do the outside. Forty-two hundred dollars!

So the work on the cabin stopped for a while. Every night after work they'd head directly for Rocky Point and get another room finished. They asked about the attic and the cellar but were told to forget about them – they weren't in the plan or the budget. It was a relief. They had all the work they could handle at the moment without any extra.

It took them a full month to complete the Rocky Point job and they were exhausted. The nice check for forty-two hundred dollars made all the hard work worth while.

(July/August 1984)

Mr. Elliott's warehouse man finally was able to come back to work first week in July; his driver a few weeks later. He managed to keep Ennis and Jack on till the end of August and promised to call them if he had any work for them.

Back to work on the cabin. They finished up the last of the roof, got all the windows and doors in and the last bit of chimney work done. It had taken them four months to complete. It seemed like a lot longer. It was time to move in.

The front door opened into the small living room. Fireplace in the center of the left wall. The only furniture was the large burgundy colored leather couch and a narrow table that sat behind it. Off to the right was a six foot opening into the dining room. Oval shaped oak table and chairs, with the china cabinet against the far wall. A small desk sat in a front corner. The back wall of the dining room opened into the kitchen. Back wall of the kitchen had the two Hoosier cabinets with a sink in between; window over the sink. Left hand wall had the large cast iron stove, right hand wall had the ice box and pantry cabinet.

The back wall of the living room opened into the bathroom and hall area. Bathroom door to the right. The rectangular bathroom had the large claw-foot bathtub at the far end, window above it; two sinks side by side with a shelf and mirror above each; and the toilet. Two doors off to the left of the hall led to the bedrooms. Each bedroom had a bed, night stand, chest of drawers, and wardrobe; all collected from the antique stores and gotten in exchange for work. Mattresses and linens were the only things they had to purchase for the bedrooms.

"I can't believe we're finally finished." Jack said as he stood in the middle of the dining room and watched as Ennis got a pot of coffee started on their stove.

"I know." Ennis said as he wiped his hands on his jeans and glanced around. "I can't believe how well it all turned out. I never expected it to be this nice."

"The best thing about it is that it's all paid for." Jack said as he came up behind Ennis and put his arms around him. "And we don't owe nobody a penny!"

"Yeah, that is the best part." Ennis agreed. "Can't nobody foreclose on it. And there's no monthly payments we got a make; 'cept for keepin up with the electric bill for our freezers."

"We know how much it's costin us now; so as long as we keep enough stashed in the bank, we shouldn't have nothin to worry about." Jack said as he nuzzled Ennis' neck. "I really think we should go try out our new beds. What do you think?"

"Sounds good, but we need to get those curtains your mom made for us put up first." Ennis caressed the arms holding him. "Then we'll have full privacy for sure."

"Good idea." Jack agreed.

After their cup of coffee, they got to work on installing the curtain rods in all the rooms. Mrs. Twist had taken he dark red velvet drapes they got from the Mills house, and made drapes for the bedrooms, living room, and dining rooms. Once that was finished, and their curtains hung, they moved the last of their things in from their tent.

"I really like this mantle." Jack said as he lit the candles they had placed there.

"I do too." Ennis agreed. "And it was real easy to make."

"You think we should get some kerosene lamps or do you think these camp lanterns will do?" Jack asked.

"Nah; I don't care for the smell a those lamps and they leave a dirty film on everythin." Ennis said. "We got along so far with these camp lights. Let's just use them, as long as we can afford batteries for 'em."

"That's fine with me." Jack agreed. "We'll be out workin on the ranch most a the time anyway and those lamps give us enough light to cook by. They're easy enough to carry from room to room and the batteries aren't all that expensive."

"As little as we use 'em, the batteries should last a long time." Ennis said. "We'll make sure and keep some extras in reserve."

"Good idea." Jack said rubbing his hands together. "Now come over here and let's try out this couch."

Ennis grinned and joined him as they sat side by side asking, "You want a fire?"

"Don't need one." Jack said as he linked arms with Ennis and held his hand. "I got everythin I need to keep me warm right here."

Ennis shoulder bumped him and said, "I think we should build some shelves here on either side a the fireplace to hold us some firewood. We wanna make room for as much of it as we can inside where it'll stay dry."

"Maybe we should get another one a those sheds. We could put it up close to the cabin and keep the firewood in it." Jack suggested.

"They're too expensive." Ennis said. "We can build us somethin out back. Maybe a nice porch. We can store all the firewood we'll need on it."

"We gonna need more trees for that; or could we use plywood?" Jack asked.

"We won't need to use trees." Ennis said. "It won't cost that much to buy what we'll need. We'll do the back porch first so we'll have a place for the firewood; then if we got enough money and time before the weather gets too bad, we'll build us a front porch."

"Wow." Jack said as he stared at the candle light. "You know, I always dreamed of a cabin out here; but I never figured on anythin like this. It couldn't be more perfect."

"Well... you might think different when the snow comes." Ennis said. "You'll be wishin we had figured electricity into our budget."

"That's gonna cost a lot a money, I know." Jack said. "We can make it through this first winter and start savin up for electricity next year. At least, we got runnin water and don't have to worry none about emptyin the port-a-potty any more."

"And that antique washin machine set up works a lot better than I thought it would." Ennis said. "I'm glad it fits there in the hallway. Now we need to figure a way to hang stuff to dry inside. I guess I can put some hooks up and run some lines."

"Momma has a couple a those little fold-up racks that she uses when the weather is bad." Jack said. "Maybe we could find us a couple a those."

"My mom had a couple a those too." Ennis said. "We'll take a look in town and see if we can find some."

"Walmart would probably have them." Jack suggested.

"If not; I might could figure out how to make 'em." Ennis offered.

"You know what's really gonna be nice; this couch makes into a queen-sized bed." Jack said. "So when it gets really cold, we can sleep in here in front a this great fireplace you built us."

"Yeah." Ennis agreed. "I was thinkin about that. We won't freeze this winter; that's for sure."

"You think we got enough firewood?" Jack asked.

"Don't know." Ennis answered. "We got a mountain of it, but with the fireplace and the cook-stove, we'll be usin a lot every day. It wouldn't hurt to get as much stocked up as we can."

"Okay, so our next project is a porch." Jack said. "I suppose you got it all figured out in that little note book a yours how much stuff we'll need?"

"I do." Ennis said. "Now that we got the use of half a the barn, we won't have to worry none about buildin us one this year, so we can get on with the porches."

"Sounds good to me." Jack said as he stood and pulled Ennis up with him. "Time to try out that new bathtub."

"You got great ideas, Jack." Ennis grinned and headed for the kitchen to put some water on to heat."

Their first night in the cabin was one they would never forget. A steamy hot bath in their huge tub, dinner cooked together on their stove and eaten in their candle lit dining room, a good long time spent in front of the fireplace – each deep in thoughts that they were incapable of putting into words. There was no need for words as each seemed to understand the others thoughts without any need to express them. Jack was stunned into silence thinking about his dream coming true – a cabin that he and Ennis had built, out in the woods he loved so much, and close enough to look after his mom. Ennis silent as he realized that he finally had a home again for the first time since he'd lost his folks and their ranch.

Both so filled with awe they were unable to speak for some time. The evening ended early to the comfort of their new bed.

CHAPTER SEVEN

(September 1984)

(Author's note: I know nothing about hunting – nothing! This is all made up. Fiction!)

Hunting season opened in some parts of the state. Ennis and Jack could hardly wait. They planned their trip to Yellowstone, filled their camper with supplies, loaded up their horses and took off. The first two days they didn't even try. They spent the time resting and enjoying just being alone in the mountains with all the beautiful scenery that they loved so much.

The third day they went for a ride looking for tracks and found some right off.

"How come you know right where to look for tracks and everyone else I talked to about huntin says that it takes weeks sometimes to find 'em; and sometimes they can't find 'em at all?" Jack asked.

"Cause I know where to look. It ain't all the difficult, Jack. You gotta know what elk like to eat and where it grows. Then you figure on where there's a water source, and cover for them for protection. You find all three a those, there's a pretty good chance you'll find some elk, or deer, or moose, or whatever it is you're huntin." Ennis said then added, "You see that little stream down there?" Ennis asked pointing down slope about a hundred yards in front of them.

"Uh huh." Jack said. "What about it?"

"Just about sun up, you can bet there'll be elk down there takin a drink a water." Ennis said. "We get here nice and early, get back in these trees, and we'll get us an elk."

What they got the next morning was two! An eight pointer, and a ten pointer.

"Hot damn!" Jack shouted as they scurried down the slope. "I actually got one!"

"You sure did." Ennis said as he carefully made sure the two were dead before they got too close. "Now the hard work starts."

They got busy with the skinning and quartering. Hauled the meat up the slope to where their horses were tethered in the trees. With the heads and hides tied on top, they walked their horses back to where their truck was parked some three miles back. They stashed their take in the tack compartment of their trailer, cleaned up and had lunch before heading back down the mountain.

"You got two!" Ranger Max Biddle exclaimed when they checked in at the Ranger station before leaving. He made his notations on their tags and marveled at their catch. "We got guys comin up here all the time, stay for weeks and end up empty handed. What's your secret?"

"The secret is we come up here to hunt; not to drink and hide out from the wives." Ennis said with a little grin.

"I hear ya." Ranger Biddle said. "I'm sure a lot a that goes on up there judging from all the garbage that gets hauled out a that area every year. These two are beauts. Are you gonna have 'em mounted?"

"Nah." Jack said. "We're just in it for the meat. Heads and hides go to the butcher. Whether he gets 'em mounted or don't don't concern us."

"Good way a thinkin." Ranger Biddle said and gave them a little salute as they drove off down the rest of the way out of the mountains and out of the park.

"What do you think your Dad will say when hears we got two?" Ennis asked as they drove.

"He'll complain because we didn't get three; or that we didn't bring him the head, or that the sky is blue and the grass is green. He'll find somethin to complain about; somethin to blame us for." Jack said.

"You're probably right about that." Ennis said. He reached over and gave Jack's arm a squeeze. "This should fill up at least a couple a our freezers."

"Yeah." Jack said, regaining his good mood. "How much you figure we need to give the old man? He didn't say nothin about how much he wanted."

"I was thinkin about a quarter." Ennis said. "Like you said; no matter how much we give him, he'll claim we agreed to more."

"I think a quarter is more than enough." Jack agreed. "We'll tell Momma that if she needs more we can give 'em more later on. If we give him a lot right now, he'll be off to the butchers tryin to sell it."

"I hadn't thought about that; but you're probably right." Ennis said. "Okay. Let's tell Hennessey to separate out a quarter then. The rest we'll keep or trade off for other meat."

"Sounds good to me." Jack said. "It's going to be great havin those freezers full a meat finally."

"Yep." Ennis agreed. "I just wish our little garden had produced more. We don't have all that much in the way of vegetables stored up; and no fruit at all except for those frozen strawberries we got on sale at the grocery store that time."

"Momma says we'll be able to find just about any kind a fruit or vegetables we want next month when they have Farmer's Market Day." Jack said. "I hope she's right. I do like a little somethin sweet after my dinner."

"I thought I was your after dinner sweet." Ennis asked straight faced causing Jack to laugh out loud. One of his greatest pleasures in life was to make Jack laugh.

The old man's eyes lit up when they walked in carrying the cardboard boxes from Hennessey's filled with assorted cuts of Elk meat. "Well, carry 'em downstairs and set it on top a the washing machine. I'll put it in the freezer." He said as he fumbled with his keyring looking for the keys to his freezers.

"Oh thank you Son, Ennis." Mrs. Twist said, hugging them both. "I can't wait to cook some of it up."

"And don't forget you still owe me some fish!" The old man said as Jack and Ennis left.

"That went about like I expected." Ennis said as they got into their truck and headed to the pump house to store their several cartons of assorted meats in their freezers.

"Yeah." Jack said. "About what I expected too."

"So what do you think about Hennessey's offer?" Ennis asked as they loaded up freezer after freezer.

"You wanna go back up for more elk?" Jack asked.

"Why not? We got all the meat we need now and he says he'll pay us cash money." Ennis said. "I was thinkin that three or four hundred dollars would come in handy now that we're not workin."

"It would be good to have the extra cash for Farmer's Market." Jack agreed. "We wouldn't have to draw none on our savings."

"That's what I was thinkin, and Hennessey says he'll provide the tags we'll need." Ennis said.

"Okay. Let's do it." Jack said as they finished loading their freezers. "When do you want to leave?"

"Let's head on out tomorrow while we still got good weather." Ennis suggested as they headed back to their cabin.

So one week after returning from their first hunt of the season, they headed out again.

"I see you're back." Ranger Biddle greeted them with a friendly smile. "You eat up both a them elks already?"

"We got tags from Hennessey's Butcher Shop in Gillette." Ennis said and showed him their papers.

"Good enough." The Ranger said. "Looks like you got the perfect weather for it. It's supposed to turn in the next week or so. You plannin on bein back by then?"

"Yep." Ennis said out the driver's window. "Hopefully three or four days. We don't wanna press out luck."

"All right. Good luck to you then." Ranger Biddle waved them on through.

Three days later they were back at the Ranger station with two more elks.

"Well that was fast!" Ranger Biddle greeted them.

"Didn't see no sense in dallyin." Ennis said with a little grin.

"You see any bears up there? We're getting lots a report of bears bein seen." Ranger Biddle asked.

"Nope." Ennis and Jack both shook their heads. "We didn't see no bears."

"Well good. Maybe they were just imagin they saw 'em. You two take care now." The Ranger said and waved them on their way.

Hennessey was very happy to have the meat for his shop and gladly paid them for it. He asked if they were planning on going out again and they both said no. The weather was about to turn and they were happy with what they had.

"You see any bears up there?" Hennessey asked. "I heard on the radio they been seein a lot a bears up there."

"No kiddin?" Jack asked and exchanged looks with Ennis.

"Glad we got ours and got out a there when we did." Ennis said. "I don't wanna have to be messin with no bears."

"You boys ever hunt Moose?" Hennessy asked.

"Nah." Ennis said. "Don't care for the taste."

"Me neither." Jack agreed.

"You hear about the reward they're offerin?" Sean asked.

"Reward?" Ennis asked.

"Who'd offer a reward for Moose?" Jack asked.

"The county, I guess; I don't know. It's in the paper though." Hennessey said. "Seems there isn't much interest in huntin moose and their population is way out of control in some areas. They're needin hunters to come in and thin out the herds. Couple years ago they started offerin a reward but not many took 'em up on it. So hundreds of 'em are dyin off every winter because there isn't enough grazin area to support 'em all. This year they're getting desperate and offerin five hundred a head."

"Five hundred?" Jack said amazed at such an offer.

"Still; it ain't worth it." Ennis shrugged. "Them things like the high remote areas; almost as bad as them mountain goats. They're hard to take down, hard to skin, and you got twice as much meat to haul down off of a mountain and nobody likes the meat."

"I got a few people ask now and then for moose meet. It's cheaper than most other game meat so it does sell." Hennessey offered.

"If we was to take two of 'em, that'd be a thousand dollars!" Jack enthused.

"Yeah, and close to a thousand pounds a meat to haul down off a mountain." Ennis said. "You think you could sell a thousand pounds a moose meat, Hennessey?"

"Well, no; but I got a buddy in Sheridan that could handle some of it; he owns a butcher shop there."

"What if we got 'em one at a time; then we'd only have to worry about bringin down half that much." Jack argued. "We ought to be able to handle that."

"Oh, one more thing." Hennessey said. "You'd have to bring them the head. And they're pretty big; pretty heavy."

"We could get some pack horses." Jack suggested.

"You boys goin on that moose hunt?" An old man joined their conversation.

"No." Ennis said.

"Maybe." Jack said.

"I'm sorry friend." Hennessey addressed the old man. "But I think you're a little too old to make the trip."

"Oh I wasn't gonna ask to go along; I just wanted to see if I could wrangle a way to get some a that moose meat. My family and me, we all love it. Grew up eatin it; but you can't find it in butcher shops no more. You gotta find somebody doin the huntin or you have to do without."

"You'd be interested in buyin some of it then?" Hennessey asked.

"Well now, I was thinkin more a tradin for some." The old man said. "I was listenin to you talk. You need some pack horses. I got some."

"We couldn't use regular horses." Ennis said, trying to discourage the idea of such a hunt. "We'd need horses used to packin raw meat down a mountain. Most horses don't take to that kind a thing."

"Boy, I know that!" The old man said, wiping the corners of his mouth with an old blue print handkerchief. "My horses have carried, moose, elk, deer, goat, bear, boar; just about every kind a raw meat you can think up. I trained 'em myself. They ain't afraid a gun shots neither."

"And just what would you want in return for the use of your horses?" Jack asked.

"Now wait a minute." Ennis tried to stop things before they went any further. "We ain't agreed on goin yet."

"I'd like a quarter. That'd be a fair enough deal." The old man said. "You figure it'd take about a week or two maybe?"

"That sounds fair; don't it?" Jack asked.

"Just how old are these horses a yours? When was the last time they been on a hunt?" Ennis asked.

"Last month. My two sons come up from Florida and got 'em an elk." The old man said. "They'll make it all right. You're welcome to come over to my place and take a look at 'em before we shake on any deal."

"And what happens if we go and come back empty handed? What'd we owe you then?" Ennis asked.

"Well, it'd be a gamble, all right." The old man said and took the tooth-pick out of his mouth and thought about it for a minute. "You two look like you know what you're doin. I'm willin to gamble. You come back empty handed, we both take the loss. You won't owe me nothin. Can't be any fairer than that."

"I got no way of carryin 'em." Ennis pleaded. "My trailer only holds two."

"You can use my trailer." Hennessey offered. "It carries four, plus it's got a big tack compartment. It'll carry lots a meat and I got all the sacks you'll need to carry it in."

"Jeez!" Ennis walked a few paces off, lit a cigarette and thought about it.

"What's the matter, Cowboy?" Jack asked walking over to him after a few minutes. "You don't think we can find nothin to do with an extra thousand dollars?"

"Five hundred." Ennis corrected him. "If we go; it'd be only for one – not two. One's gonna be difficult enough to quarter and carry out a there. Don't you go thinkin about two."

"Well … five hundred is five hundred." Jack said with a slow grin. "That'd be more than enough to pay the electric bill through till we could find us jobs in the spring."

"Ain't you had enough of huntin for a while?" Ennis asked hoping to discourage the thought of another hunt so soon.

"I was just thinkin about the money, Cowboy." Jack said. "And bein up there in the mountains."

"I ain't used to huntin Moose, Jack. It might takes weeks to find 'em. We'd miss out on Farmer's Market Day." Ennis argued.

"Five hundred would buy a lot a groceries; or maybe even buildin supplies for our porches you're talkin about buildin."

"Shit." Ennis said quietly to himself, knowing that Jack was right. They needed to do whatever they could to get their bank account built up as there was no guarantee when or if they'd be able to find jobs in the spring. "So where is it that they're needin these moose hunters? Yellowstone?" He asked walking back over to Hennessey.

"Nah, south a there. In the Crescent Mountains." Hennessey said. "And accordin to what the papers say, you won't have to look very hard. They're supposedly all over the place."

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try." Ennis said. "But not longer than a week or ten days at most. That will still give us time to get home for Farmer's Market Day."

"All right!" Hennessey, the old man, Jack and Ennis, all shook on the deal. The old man would get one quarter in return for loaning his pack horses, Hennessey would get the rest of the meat to sell in his store, and Jack and Ennis would get to keep the reward money and half the money the meat would bring in.

They left the next morning. They checked in with the rangers who assured them that they didn't need any hunting tags this year for Moose, that it was open season on them, and that there was indeed a five-hundred dollar reward for each head brought in. The Ranger noticed the walkie-talkie on Jack's belt and suggested he turn it to a certain channel as the Rangers monitored that channel in case there were any accidents or they were needed for anything.

Ennis drove as far up into the mountains as he could. They set up camp and planned to head out on horse back the next morning. The weather was cold but mild for mid-September with no snow on the ground yet. As Ennis stood and sniffed the air, he could tell that snow was not far off. He hoped they could get their moose and get out of there before it turned.

Second day out they spotted a herd but it was a long distance off. Too far to get an accurate shot. They followed the herd for a few hours hoping to spot a straggler but no luck. As they turned to head back to camp, a huge moose was standing in the middle of the trail. Ennis raised his gun and shot. The animal walked on about ten feet before it collapsed.

"Hot dog!" Jack cried, pumping his fist in the air. "Five hundred dollars! Ca-ching!"

They dismounted, tied their horses to some trees and walked over to their kill. They were working diligently when Jack jumped up, grabbed his rifle and shot a second one that was walking up on them.

"I didn't even see him." Ennis said as he stood to see what Jack was shooting at.

"You were busy." Jack said grinning from ear to ear. "I got a moose!"

"You sure did, Bud!" Ennis said. "Now we got two of 'em to quarter and haul down off a this mountain."

"Yeah, well; we got the two pack horses, and our horses." Jack began to see the problem. "I guess we could walk back to the truck. It ain't but a couple a miles."

"I'd say it's closer to six or seven miles, Bud." Ennis said. "Best get to work. We need to get this meat under wrap and be on our way if we want to make it back before dark."

They finished the first moose and got it loaded up, along with the head, on the pack horses. They were just beginning on the second when they spotted several more milling around.

"Jesus, Cowboy!" Jack stood getting ready to shoot. "Which one do I aim at?"

"Whichever one is closest." Ennis said standing with his back to Jack and preparing to shoot also. "Don't shoot though unless they come any closer, Jack. I'm going to fire once in the air and see if maybe they'll take off. Hold your fire."

"What if they come this way?" Jack asked nervously holding his gun at the ready.

"See them rocks over there?" Ennis asked. "If they head in your direction, fire once then make for those rocks. I'll be right behind you." He fired into the air and all the moose stopped for a moment then began running – towards them. They both fired and fled to the rocks where they both fired again.

Four more moose lay dead before them.

"Holy shit!" Jack said. "What're we gonna do now?"

They were both startled by a loud moose call not too far off.

"Hell if I know!" Ennis said.

"Let's see if this thing will reach the Ranger station." Jack said and took out his walkie-talkie. "They should know what to do."

"Come in Twist; I read you." The voice came back. "Is someone hurt?"

"Nah; but we got us another problem." Jack said.

"Did you get a moose?" The Ranger asked.

"Kind a." Jack said.

"Kind a?" The Ranger asked puzzled.

"We got six of 'em." Jack said as Ennis stood nearby laughing at him trying to explain.

"SIX?" The Ranger's voiced boomed. "Did you say six? You got six moose?"

"Yeah. And we don't know what to do with 'em. There's no way in hell we can haul all this meat down."

"Hold on a minute." The Ranger said.

Jack held for several minutes. "What're you laughin at?" He asked Ennis.

"You wanted to hunt Moose. How you enjoyin it so far?" Ennis snickered.

"Shee – it!" Jack said aloud. "I never figured it'd be anythin like this. Didn't expect to see 'em up this close."

"That's the thing about game, Jack. You never know what they're gonna do. You gotta be prepared. And the two a us ain't in no way prepared for a moose hunt." Ennis said as he bent back down and began working on the second moose again.

"Yes, I'm here." Jack said back into his walkie-talkie.

"I got a call in for some pack mules. They're about thirty minutes out. Can you give me your exact location?" The Ranger said.

Jack gave it to him as best he could.

"Just hold up there. Don't leave the carcasses unless you have to." The Ranger said. "No sense in feedin the coyotes."

"Well that made me feel better." Jack said and Ennis laughed at him again.

"Welcome to the world a big game huntin." Ennis said as he laughed. "It won't be so bad, Bud. He was probably jokin about the coyotes."

"What if he wasn't?" Jack asked as he looked carefully around the area.

"If coyotes were to show up, they'd be more interested in these carcasses than in us." Ennis assured him. "They aren't gonna be interested in two skinny men runnin for their lives like little girls, when there's fresh kill layin on the ground for the takin."

"Okay." Jack settled down some. "So if they show, we just let 'em have the meat and the two of us take off?"

"Sure enough." Ennis said. "Now get busy. I ain't goin do all a these by myself. You got at least half of 'em and I can hardly wait to hear how you tell this story to your dad."

"He won't believe it no matter how it's told." Jack said and got busy with his knife.

"I wouldn't believe it neither if I hadn't been right in the middle of it." Ennis said.

"It is pretty incredible; isn't it." Jack grinned as he worked.

They had quartered, packed and loaded the first two they killed and all four horses were carrying their limit. They started on the next animal and were just about finished with it when the mule team showed up.

"Great!" Ennis said with disgust under his breath. "Dumbass mules!"

There were eight mules though and four mule skinners and they set to work immediately on the untouched carcasses. It was dark by the time they made it back down the mountain.

They were greeted by a group of Rangers, slapping them on their backs and congratulating them. All they wanted to do was get on the road and head home.

"Wait, wait." The Rangers stopped them. "You can't go yet. We got to get your address so we can send you your check!"

"Oh yeah." Jack said stifling a yawn. "Send it to the Twist Ranch, P.O. Box 117, Gillette, WY. 82718.

"What do you want us to do with all this meat?" The Ranger called after them as they headed out to their truck.

"We got what we need." Ennis called back. "Give it to the skinners, or someone who needs it. We don't care."

They stopped at the first diner they came to and had a big dinner and called Hennessey to have him ready to take the meat when they got there.

They awoke the next morning in their cabin shivering. A light snow had fallen over night and the temperature hovered around freezing.

"Brrrr" Jack said as they hurried and dressed. "How much you think it will take to get electricity in here?"

"Don't know." Ennis grinned as he got a fire going in the stove and put a pot of coffee on, while Jack got a fire going in the fireplace.

"You reckon they're gonna pay us for all six moose, or just the first two?" Jack asked.

"We'll probably get somethin for 'em, but the skinners will probably get a share since they helped. I don't know what we'd a done if they hadn't a showed up." Ennis said.

"We'd a been in a real bind; that's for sure." Jack agreed as the two of them worked up a breakfast.

A week later a check for all six animals, three thousand dollars, showed up along with a letter from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department asking them to be in on an organized hunt for more moose.

"Wow!" Jack said as he opened it and showed the check to Ennis. "Just in time for Farmer's Market Day; and an invitation for another hunt."

"Oh no! We ain't goin to hunt no more moose, and we ain't spendin all that money at the market, Jack. We got a save it. Remember, we ain't got nothin comin in right now but those little handy man jobs and they ain't comin in all that often now."

"Yeah, I know. And we got an electric bill to pay." Jack said. "There's a phone number here. We can call 'em and tell 'em we ain't interested in their hunt."

Ennis said nothing more and apparently was deep in thought.

"You got somethin on your mind? Somethin else you want to spend that money on?" Jack asked.

"I was thinkin of somethin." Ennis admitted. "Somethin expensive; you said was gonna cost thirty-five hundred."

"Well, we still got that forty-two hundred from the Rocky Point paint job. So we could swing it." Jack said. "I don't remember talkin about nothin we needed that cost that much; or did you talk with Mr. Elliott about gettin electricity out here?"

"Nah. That's gonna cost a lot more than that." Ennis said.

"Well what then?" Jack asked.

"A new furnace for your folks house." Ennis said, looking up from his cup of coffee to catch Jack's reaction.

"You kiddin me?" Jack asked wide-eyed.

"Nope." Ennis said. "That old hunk a junk they got in the cellar don't put out enough warm air for nothin. And that fireplace doesn't help a whole lot. When was the last time it was cleaned out or the chimney checked?"

"I don't have any idea." Jack said honestly. "I told you I tried to put a new furnace in for them years ago but Dad wouldn't hear of it. He threw a screamin fit claimin I was tryin to make the house over so I could move back in and take the ranch over."

"If it was just your dad, I wouldn't a give a shit." Ennis said. "But I worry about your momma. She needs that house to be heated."

"I agree." Jack said. "But... oh I get it. You're thinkin that now that she's not takin any crap from him any more, she'd agree to have one put in. Good thinkin."

"You think we should do it then?" Ennis asked.

"I do." Jack said. "Momma said last time they had someone out to work on it he told her it was in such bad shape he wouldn't try to light it on a dare."

"I believe it. And all the fumes leakin from it; I worry about her doin laundry down there in the cellar." Ennis added.

"All right. Let's do it." Jack agreed with a big smile. "Let's talk to her first though so she can kind of prepare him."

"Now that you got your own place, he can't think you're doin it so you can move into the house." Ennis said.

"No tellin how Dad's gonna react to anything, Cowboy. He can scream all he wants. It's Momma that I worry about."

"I agree. That's exactly what I was thinkin." Ennis said. "You think she'll go for it?"

"She'll probably say we should spend it on our own place." Jack said.

"Probably." Ennis agreed. "But we got the fireplace and the stove. It's gonna be cold, but I figure we can stand it a lot better than she can."

"You're right about that." Jack said. "The cold don't bother me all that much. I guess I'm used to it."

"And you got me to keep you warm." Ennis grinned.

"That's right." Jack returned his grin. "Let's go tell her."

"Oh no; you need to be spending that hard earned money on your place. We can get by with what we got." She protested when they discussed it with her over a cup of coffee in the Twist kitchen.

"Momma, we got all we need for right now." Jack insisted.

"What about electricity? Shouldn't you put it towards gettin that run out to your cabin?" She asked.

"Next spring when we find work again, we'll see about gettin electricity. Right now we're fine without it."

"Oh Son. I just don't know. You remember what happened last time we tried to talk him into it."

"Everythins different then time, Momma. We don't need to _ask_ him; we_ tell _him." Jack said.

"That's right." Ennis put his two cents in. "Remember, it's you and Jack together that got the say-so now."

"I know." She said. "It's just so hard to go against him though."

"That's cause you let him make all the decisions all those years." Jack said. "Now it's your turn to make 'em."

"But what about the workmen?" She asked. "You know how he's going to treat them."

"We can warn 'em in advance." Ennis said. "I'm sure they're used to tanglin with cantankerous old folks."

"Cantankerous?" Mrs. Twist gave a little laugh. "That's a bit of an understatement; don't you think?"

"They're used to dealin with people of all kinds, Momma. And Ennis and I can be sure we're here when they come so there won't be nothin serious happen."

"Well, if you're sure it's what you wanna do." She said. "It would really be nice to have heat in the house for a change. That little electric heater in our bedroom doesn't work very well any more. Only puts out a little heat on one side."

"You still got that old thing, Momma? I thought you got rid a that years ago."

"It still puts out a little heat. And a little is better than none at all." She said.

"All right then." Jack said standing up from the table and carrying his cup to the sink. "We're goin in to town and make arrangements. Do you have the name of that company that give you that estimate a couple years ago?"

"Oh yes. I'm sure I do." She said and jumped up and began rummaging through a kitchen drawer.

Ennis brought his coffee cup to the sink and got a shoulder bump from Jack. "Thanks for this, Cowboy."

"Worth every penny to keep her warm." Ennis smiled at him.

"Here it is!" She cried triumphantly.

"Great." Jack said and gave her a peck on the cheek. "We'll see you later and let you know all the details."

"You worried about today?" Ennis asked as he and Jack ate breakfast.

"No." Jack said as he fiddled with a piece of toast. "I was just thinkin that I should a just went ahead and had the heater put in years ago. The only reason I didn't was cause he made me so mad with the fuss he put up. I should a gone ahead and done it anyway for Momma."

"We can't worry none about years ago, Bud." Ennis said. "We're doin it now. That's what counts."

"Yeah." Jack brightened up. "Let's get on over to the house. They said they'd be here early. I wanna make sure that Dad isn't givin Momma a hard time about it."

"Let's do it." Ennis agreed and they headed up to the house.

Mr. and Mrs. Twist were arguing loud and strong when they arrived. The old man just gave the two of them a hateful look and went into the living room. Mrs. Twist looked relieved to see them.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're here. I got a call a little while ago sayin they are on their way." She said.

"Dad givin you trouble about it?" Jack asked.

"Just the usual." She said. "He don't believe you got that money from killin moose. He said the TV says a couple guys from Gillette done the killin."

"That's cause they asked us for a mailin address for the check and we give 'em our P.O. Box address." Jack explained.

"Where does he think we got the money?" Ennis asked. "Does he think we stole it?"

"Oh I don't know what he thinks." She said. "One minute he's sayin the two a you probably stole it somewhere; the next minute he's sayin you probably got it from Lureen. Either way he says its dirty money and he don't want no part of it."

"Well he can move upstairs then if he likes the cold so much." Jack said. "We only had enough to buy the unit and new radiators for the down stairs so it won't affect the upstairs much at all."

"Oh I don't care about the upstairs. We haven't used it in years." She said. "Only when you'd come for a visit. I always felt so bad with you sleepin up there in the cold."

"I didn't mind, Momma." Jack assured her. "It was a lot better than sleepin in my truck like I was doin back in my rodeo days."

"Here they are!" She jumped up from the table when they heard a truck pull up.

"Now don't you worry about a thing, Momma. Ennis and me will keep an eye on things."

"Why don't you go into town and visit with your friends for the day." Ennis suggested. "There's no reason you have to stay around here while the work is bein done."

"That's a good idea, Momma. They said it was gonna take most a the day. You could go shoppin or to a movie, or both." Jack said as Ennis let the men in and showed them to the cellar door.

"Oh that sounds like so much fun." She looked around nervously as the old man came into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee before disappearing back into the front room. "Maybe I will. That way I wouldn't have to listen to him complainin."

"Do it, Momma." Jack said. "You need some spendin money?" He reached for his wallet.

"No, Son; I always keep a little a the grocery money back in case I need somethin I know he won't wanna spend money on." She said in a low voice. "I think this would be a splendid day to dip into that little fund."

"Go on then, Momma." Jack said. "Put your best dress on, and go have some fun."

She gave him a hug and headed for her room where she changed into her blue print dress. With coat slung around her shoulders, and purse in hand, she left.

"Now all we have to worry about is the old man." Jack said as Ennis returned. "It was a good idea to send Momma off, but with her gone, there's nothin holdin him back from speakin his mind or givin the men a hard time."

"Well, that'll be our job for the day – keepin an eye on him, and seein that he don't cause the men no trouble." Ennis said.

Jack put another pot of coffee on and their day of guard duty began. Every time the old man went down to the cellar to see what was going on, they followed him. Mr. Twist grumbled and cursed but he left the workers alone as they dismantled the smelly old heating unit.

It was a long day, but by four o'clock in the afternoon when Mrs. Twist arrived back home, the workmen were gone. The new unit and radiators were installed. The house had heat in it for the first time in yeas.

"Oh my goodness! Doesn't it feel nice in here!" She grinned as Jack helped her off with her coat. "How was he? Did he cause much trouble?"

"Nope." Ennis said.

She looked to her son. "That's right, Momma. We kept an eye on him all day and where ever he went, we went right along with him. He never got near the workmen, even when they chased him out of the front room so they could install the new radiator in there."

"Well, he's probably saved it all up for me then." She said as she reached for a cup of coffee. "You boys want some?"

"No thanks, Momma." Jack said. "We been drinkin it all day long. I think we'll head on home."

"You got your walkie-talkie?" Ennis asked her.

"Yes, it's in my purse." She said.

"Well get it and put it back in your apron pocket." Jack said. "And if he gives you too much trouble, you give us a call."

"I will." She assured them. "Oh this is just so much more comfortable in here now." She smiled. "I don't know how I'll ever be able to thank the two a you."

"How about a cake?" Ennis smiled at her.

"Of course! What kind would you like?" She said as she tied her apron on.

"Cinnamon," they both said in unison.

"Oh, you liked that Sock-It-To-Me cake, did you? I'll bake you one tonight!"

"You don't have to do it tonight, Momma. We're gonna be in town tomorrow. We got a couple a deliveries to make for Poppy. Tomorrow will be soon enough."

"All right then." She gave them both a kiss on the cheek. "Tomorrow it is. You stop in here after you get through with your errands in town, and I'll have it ready for you."

CHAPTER EIGHT

(October 1984)

"What's the matter, Momma? Bad news?" Jack asked his mom as they drove home from town.

"Oh... more sad than bad, I guess I'd have to say." She said as she sat between Ennis and Jack with her lap full of mail they had just collected.

"Anythin we can help with?" Ennis offered.

"No; I'm afraid not." She said with a sigh. "Nothin much anybody can do in this situation."

"Who's the letter from, Momma?" Jack asked not willing to let the matter go just yet.

"You remember the twins?" She asked as she folded the letter carefully and placed it back into the envelope.

"Your cousins? Sure I do." Jack said. "I remember they used to come visit us when I was little. Didn't they move away? Back east somewhere?"

"Minneapolis." She said, pulling a small handkerchief from her purse and dabbing her eyes.

"What is it?" Jack asked. "Has somethin happened to one a them?"

"They have found themselves in extremely difficult circumstances and I am powerless to help them in any way." She said with a sad shrug.

Ennis gave Jack a questioning look and Jack explained. "The twins, Lily and Lyla, are a few years older than Momma; they all grew up together. When Grandma Sullivan died, they came to stay with Momma for a time. They've remained real close ever since."

"I never had a sister." Mrs. Twist said. "But the twins were like sisters to me. I thought my heart would break when they married and moved away."

"Somethin happen to 'em?" Ennis asked.

"Oh it's just... life, I suppose. It's not fair, they're such good people; but there's nothin anyone can do about it." She said wistfully.

"Didn't you tell me last visit that they were both widows now? Aren't they livin together, helpin each other out?" Jack said.

"Well you know, they married brothers; it was a double wedding at the church in Lightnin Flat. That was back when we still had a church in Lightnin Flat a course. Neither a those men was worth the time a day, but they were crazy in love, so they married. Neither a them had any children. The Sullivan curse the family used to call it. Very few children were ever born to any a us.

"Lily lost her husband first about five or six years ago; still the penniless bum he was when they got married all those years ago. She had to sell their car and everythin they owned just to get him buried. She moved in with Lyla and her husband. He wasn't much better than his brother, but at least he had a job. He was a gambler though, and when he passed last year, she found herself deep in debt. She had to sell her house to pay everythin off and that left the two a them with no place to live."

"No insurance?" Jack asked.

"Oh no. Neither of them had insurance." She said. "That left them with no choice; they had to move into the county home for the aged."

"What about Social Security?" Ennis asked. "They should be gettin somethin."

"Oh yes, they get a little check each month. Two hundred, twenty-five dollars. Nobody can live on that. Even combined, it's not enough to rent an apartment, buy food, and all the other things they'd need."

"Well, is the home that bad?" Jack asked. "I mean, they're government run, they should be all right."

"Son, they say half the time there's next to no heat and they live in Minneapolis. And the food is nothin but slop." Mrs. Twist said. "They have two tiny rooms, a bed room and a sittin room. They can't have any food in their rooms, no TV or radio. If they want to watch TV they have to take the elevator down three flights to the main room and watch it there. A matron decides what they'll watch. They have to check in and check out whenever they want to leave for any reason, and they're not allowed out after dark. Everythin gets shut down and locked up at nine o'clock every evenin – don't matter if it's in the middle of a movie or not. And the county takes two hundred dollars from each of them, leavin them just twenty-five a piece for whatever they need. They are just so miserable. It breaks my heart."

"They got no other relatives to look after them?" Ennis asked as he drove.

"No." Mrs. Twist answered with a sad shake of her head. "I'm their only livin relative."

"Well, Momma; why don't you ask them to come stay with you? There's plenty a room. Ennis and I can fix up one a those upstairs rooms for 'em; get 'em a little electric heater for up there."

"Oh, Son; I've wanted to since they first told me what happened; but you know your father. I asked him about it and he near blew a gasket."

"Mom, that just ain't right." Jack said. "They helped you when you needed them. Now it's your turn to help them."

"I tried to explain that to your father, how much they helped me and all, but he wouldn't even discuss it. Just went into one a his rants." She said. "Besides... I'd really hate to expose them to his foolishness."

"But they met him before. They know what he's like." Jack argued.

"They do; but they never had to live with him before. And he was particularly vile when I mentioned it to him. No tellin what he'd say to them or how badly he'd treat them. I couldn't subject them to that." She said.

They were nearly home before Jack spoke again. "Momma, you've been tellin me for years now that the ranch is one-third mine, one-third yours, and one-third Dad's. That gives you and me together more of a say-so than him. I say you bring the twins home to live with you; and he can just like it or lump it."

Ennis gave Jack a doubtful glance, but Jack went on. "You been tellin me that right was on my side and I should stand up for my rights. Well Momma, right is on your side now. You think good and hard about it, and remember all that they done for you in the past. Think a their need now. Remind Dad that his position only gives him one-third say-so and you and me got the other two-thirds. He can't make all the rules anymore and expect the two of us to just go along with 'em. We got a say in how this ranch is run; more than he does. It's time we both stood up to him."

"Oh Jackie!" She gave a little shudder. "I just don't know if I have it in me to go against him."

"You wouldn't be alone against him, Momma." Jack said. "Me and Ennis are here, and think what it would be like havin the twins here with you full time. Think of the fun the three a you could have together."

Ennis swallowed hard as he pulled up into the driveway and stopped at the house. He sensed trouble ahead. Big trouble.

Jack helped his Mom out of the truck and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Just think about it." He whispered. "And remember that I'm here now and I'll back you up."

"All right. I'll think on it, but don't expect too much a me, Jackie. I'm just not that strong a person."

"Oh yes you are, Momma! Yes you are!" Jack insisted before hopping back into the truck.

"You think she'll do it?" Ennis asked as he drove out back towards their cabin.

"I know she wants to." Jack said. "I don't know if she has the strength to though. She's let him rule the roost from the day they were married. I've never known her to go against him in anythin."

"You wantin to send 'em some money or somethin?" Ennis asked.

"What good would it do? They aren't allowed to have no food in their rooms." Jack said.

"What about a small electric heater?" Ennis asked.

"She didn't say nothin about a heater, but if they ain't allowed no TV or radio in their rooms, I doubt they'd be allowed a heater." Jack said.

"Your momma's right." Ennis agreed. "It's a sad situation."

The next morning they stopped at the house and walked into a heated argument going full blast.

"NO!" Mr. Twist was yelling. "I ain't havin two old biddies movin into my house!"

"This house is as much mine as it is yours – more even – and I'm callin them in a little while and askin 'em if they wanna come!" Mrs. Twist voice wavered but was just as loud and determined.

"You ain't never gone against me before, woman." The old man was saying. "What's gotten into you now? Just because Jackie's here to back you up, don't mean he's gonna stay. You know how he is. Here one minute and gone the next."

"He's not leavin this time, John." She said firmly. "They got their cabin built, and all kinds a plans for the ranch."

"A hundred and twenty acres! What the hell you think he's gonna do with that? Not much, I can tell you that." The old man said with a sneer.

"Maybe not, but with two-hundred and forty, they can!" She said.

"They ain't got two-hundred, forty! We do!" The old man snarled.

"No _WE_ don't. Jackie and I do! And I told 'em they could use that middle section whenever they want."

"You can't do that!" He hollered.

"Oh yes I can; and besides, I already did! They got plans for it, and I okay-ed 'em!" She argued.

Jack and Ennis walked in the door at that point.

"Get the hell out a here. We're talkin!" The old man yelled.

"You okay, Momma?" Jack asked.

"I am." She stood proudly in front of her kitchen sink, wiping her hands on her apron. "I was just telling your father here that I'm callin the twins and invitin them to come live with us."

"Is this your idea?" The old man demanded of Jack. "I wouldn't put it past you to set her against me like this. Well I won't have it! You hear me! This is my ranch and I say who can stay and who can't and I ain't havin no leechin relatives move in on us! You got that?"

"Did you call the twins yet, Momma?" Jack asked, ignoring his father's rant.

"No. It's a bit early yet. I thought I'd wait until around nine o'clock. I want to make sure they're up."

"Good idea." Jack said. "You tell 'em if they need a ride, we'll come and get 'em."

"You are NOT bringin them old bats into MY house! I won't have it!" The old man shrieked.

"I'm callin 'em at nine, John!" She said and turned back to washing her dishes.

"Where'd she say they lived? The twins?" Ennis asked as they left.

"I don't know; somewhere in Minnesota, I think. Why?" Jack asked.

"I was wonderin since you just volunteered to go get 'em. How far is Minnesota?" Ennis asked.

"I got no idea." Jack admitted. "I guess we'd better look it up. I got a road atlas under the seat in my truck."

"I'm proud a your momma for standin up to him." Ennis said as they scanned the map. "He was really mad. You think it's safe to leave her alone with him?"

"Safe?" Jack asked as if the thought of her safety never entered his mind. "You mean the yellin? He always yells and hollers. It's just his way of communicatin I guess. He's always been like that."

"She didn't seem afraid." Ennis said as they drove back to their cabin.

"Nah." Jack agreed. "He's all hot air. He'd never dare lay a hand on her. She's got too many friends around. They'd probably lynch him if he did."

"We should check back with her after while and see if she talked to the twins. If they're comin, we should probably get a room fixed up for 'em." Ennis suggested. "Maybe paint it and such. And what about beds? Are there any they can use or should we be thinkin a goin in to town and pickin up a couple?"

"Hmmm. I don't know." Jack admitted. "We'll talk to Momma about it after while.

"Yes, I talked with both of them." Mrs. Twist said as she wiped her eyes on her apron. "I'm gonna have to call 'em back in a little while. The two of 'em were cryin so hard they couldn't talk."

"Ennis and me were talkin and wonderin if maybe we should spend a little time fixin up a room for 'em. Where did you plan on them stayin?" Jack asked as the three of them sat down at the table sipping coffee mid morning.

"In my sewin room, of course." She said without a moment's hesitation. "That's where they stayed when they came and spent time with me before. Last time was when you were born, Jackie. They came and stayed a full six weeks with me then."

"Do you really wanna give up your sewin room, Momma?" Jack asked. "I mean, you got all them empty rooms upstairs. We could fix one of 'em up real nice for them. Get 'em an electric heater."

"Oh no, Jackie. They're older than I am, and stairs aren't exactly the best thing at our age. And I was thinkin we could move my sewin machine into my room. There's plenty a room."

"What about beds?" Ennis asked. "You got any beds for 'em?"

"Oh that's right." She said, wondering how she could have forgotten that small but very important detail. "There are a couple small beds up there, I think. I haven't been in those old rooms upstairs in years. I can't say what all is up there."

"We'll go up and have a look around, see what we can find." Jack said. "You go ahead and give them another call. Tell 'em we'll come get 'em. They won't have to worry none about flyin or takin a bus or nothin." Jack said as he and Ennis took off upstairs.

They came back down a few minutes later and found Mrs. Twist sitting at the table, phone to her ear and weeping. "Yes, Lily, yes! We'll come get you. Jackie said... I know it's a long way, but Jackie said we'd come get you and we will. That's a promise! Hold on dear." And to Jack she asked, "How soon? They want to know how soon we can come?"

"Right away!" Jack said but got a jab in the ribs from Ennis.

"Wait a minute, Jack. We got a paint job tomorrow, remember?" Ennis said as he took out his little notebook and checked out their appointments.

"Oh yeah. And that other thing with Frank on Friday." Jack remembered. "What about the weekend? We got anythin planned for Saturday or Sunday?" He asked leaning over and looking at Ennis' notebook.

"No. But we do for Monday." Ennis said. "Can we make it there and back in two days?"

"With both of us drivin, we could. I know I can go at least fourteen hours or more in one day. I done it a million times, and Minneapolis ain't as far away as Childress is. We could do it, Ennis. I might need a little sleep, maybe while you're drivin I could catch a few hours." Jack reasoned. "How about this – you drive most a the way there. I'll sleep while you're drivin. I know you don't like drivin in big towns so when we get close to Minneapolis you pull over and I'll drive the rest of the way in. We pick up the twins and they and Momma can ride back in the camper. If they need to lay down, they got the bunk. All three of 'em could sleep if they wanted to. I can drive the whole way back and you can sleep while I drive us home. How about that?"

"So I can tell them Saturday?" Mrs. Twist asked. "About what time?"

"Friday we could grab a few hours a sleep before we take off. If we left about mid-night or one, we could get there about noon. Maybe a little before, or a little after. Can't give you a better time than that, Momma." And to Ennis he asked, "You okay to drive at night? I can drive there, and probably most a the way back, if you'd rather. You know I can do it."

"I can drive at night." Ennis assured him. "As long as the road is lit up enough to see the signs so I don't get us lost."

"We can take two-twelve." Jack said as the two of them peered at the road map Jack had opened out on the table before them. "Once you get north a Spearfish and up on two-twelve, it's just a straight shot clear across South Dakota. Not a big town in sight until you hit Watertown and that don't look to be much bigger than Gillette. You get us that far and then you wake me. I can take us the rest a the way in." Jack offered.

"By the time we get that far it should be light and I won't have to worry no more about getting us lost." Ennis said as they scanned the map.

"If at any time you feel like we're not goin the right way, just wake me. Two-twelve is much smaller than the main highway, and there are little towns all along the way. There should be plenty enough light for you to see." Jack explained. "Or if you're worried about light, we could always take ninety, the main highway, and wait until Sioux Falls before cuttin north."

"No. I'd rather drive the smaller road. I don't like fightin those eighteen wheelers up on the highway." Ennis said.

"All right." Jack agreed. "It's up to you. I'll probably be awake long before we get to Watertown anyway."

"I ain't worried about Watertown." Ennis said. "It looks like the road goes straight through it. I just don't wanna have to drive in Minneapolis."

"You won't. That's a promise." Jack assured him.

"It's all set then." Mrs. Twist said as she dried her tears. "They are just so happy! I can't tell you what this means to me."

"It's all right, Momma." Jack covered her shaking hand with his. "We understand. Now we gotta get busy and get their room ready. What about a coat a paint? We can do it this afternoon. What's their favorite colors? Do you know?"

"Oh yes, it's always been pink and yellow. Everythin they own had to be pink and yellow." She smiled fondly at the memory.

"Okay, you decide then. You want their room to be pink or yellow?" Jack said with a smile; loving the fact that he was able to bring his mom this little bit of happiness.

"Well, it was pale yellow, the same as the kitchen was when they stayed with us before and they both said it was the prettiest room they had ever stayed in." She said.

"Okay." Jack said. "You sure there's room enough for the sewing machine in your room? We best get after movin stuff out a that room so we can get into town and grab us some paint."

"And a couple a beds." Ennis reminded them.

"We had the cutest white wrought iron beds in there before..." That's all she got out before she saw the look on Ennis and Jack's faces. "What is it?"

"The antique store!" They both said at the same time.

"What is it?" Mrs. Twist asked as Jack dialed the phone quickly.

"Remember that house we cleaned out and the woman give us all that old furniture? One a the rooms had white wrought iron twin beds in it." Ennis explained.

"I just hope she hasn't sold 'em yet." Jack said as he waited impatiently for Poppy to answer the phone.

"Why don't you come into town with us and pick out some sheets and stuff for their beds?" Ennis suggested. "You can pick out the paint so we get the colors just right."

"Oh that's a fine idea!" Mrs. Twist said. By the time she had run a comb through her hair, and got her coat and purse, Jack was grinning from ear to ear.

"She still has the beds, and she's savin up for us till we get there." Jack announced.

In less than five minutes they were on the road; by the end of the day the room was ready. The white wrought iron beds with their white coverlets sprinkled in pink flowers, stood out against the pale yellow walls. The two white chests of drawers flanked the door on the opposite side of the room.

Jack and Ennis looked at each other with the raised eyebrows look; but Mrs. Twist was ecstatic so they were all pleased. Now all they had to do was make the trip to pick up the twins.

Ennis managed to get a few hours sleep after work and a quick dinner on Friday. Jack stayed up at the house talking with his momma; a little worried that his dad might cause trouble. He didn't. He stayed mostly in the front room after dinner watching his TV.

They left shortly before midnight. Ennis driving, Jack tucked into the bunk sound asleep, and Mrs. Twist in the make-shift bed on the dinette dosing occasionally when the road was straight and smooth.

Ennis drove comfortably until they got to Gillette for he had driven that route many times. It wasn't until he got up on the highway that his nerves set in. He hated highway driving with all the big trucks and traffic driving like it was some sort of race to get from one small town to the next. Once he reached Spearfish and made the turn north to highway two-twelve, he was much more comfortable. There were a few big rigs on the smaller highway, but not many. He never minded driving, it was just the traffic and other sometimes crazy drivers that bugged him. He flipped the radio on low, so as not to disturb the sleepers in the back, and concentrated on the road.

One small town after another passed before them. It had already been light a couple hours when they reached Watertown. He hated to disturb Jack and his momma, still sleeping in the back, but he needed to stop and use the restroom and stretch.

"Watertown?" Jack asked in disbelief. "We're in Watertown already?"

"Yep." Ennis said after Mrs. Twist and Jack exited the camper and joined him. "I like this highway, Jack. Not much traffic at all."

"I can't believe we're almost there!" Mrs. Twist said.

"We're still a good ways from bein there, Momma." Jack reminded her.

"Oh, I know; but we're so close now." She beamed. "I can hardly wait to see them."

They had breakfast at the small gas station restaurant where they stopped; and got on the road again. Ennis insisting that he was still good to drive and could make it into Hutchinson as they had originally planned. So on they drove; Ennis behind the wheel, Jack riding shot-gun, and Mrs. Twist chatting away in between them.

By the time they reached Hutchinson, Ennis was glad to give up the wheel to Jack. Traffic was getting heavier and he was good and tired of driving by then. He had completed his part of the drive, and was pleased.

Jack was eager to take over the wheel with his momma beside him and Ennis stretched out in the bunk. In no time it seemed, they were drivin around the streets of Minneapolis looking for the retirement home.

"There it is!" Mrs. Twist squealed as Jack maneuvered through the early-afternoon traffic. Snow flakes were gathering on the windshield and beginning to pile up along side the roads. "Snow already!" Mrs. Twist was saying. "I'll bet they're sittin up there wrapped in quilts and freezin!"

Ennis was awake and sitting in the dinette when Jack pulled into the parking lot. They shivered as they walked across the parking lot to the front door. It was a bit warmer inside, but not by much. People will milling around the lobby so they headed for the elevator and went on up to the third floor.

Mrs. Twist knocked on the door which was flung open immediately and they were all swept up in hugs and tears.

"What do you mean, they can't go!" Jack asked stunned. "We drove all this way and they don't wanna go?"

"Oh no!" Lily cried. "We want to leave this place more than anythin!"

"They said we can't go unless we get permission!" Lyla said and the tears came again.

Mrs. Twist had an arm around each of them as the three of them cried. She ushered the twins into the small bedroom to talk privately with them coming out moments later explaining the situation to Jack and Ennis. It was difficult for her to speak as she was in tears herself.

"What do they mean, they can't leave without permission? What kind a permission do they need?" Ennis asked. "Are they prisoners here or somethin?"

"Oh no; of course not." Mrs. Twist said, wiping her face with a little hankie. "They went down stairs this morning to tell the Director they were leavin today, and the Director told them they had to file papers sayin they were withdrawin from... whatever government program they were in that got them into this place. She said it usually takes at least a month for the papers to go through." She dissolved in tears again while her son held her.

"Okay, Momma. You and the twins hold tight. I'm gonna make a few phone calls."

"The phone's at the end of the hall to the left." Lily said from the doorway. "I'm so sorry about all this. We tried to call you when we found out, but of course, you'd already left."

"We'll figure somethin out." Jack patted her shoulder and nodded for Ennis to follow him.

"What're we gonna do, Jack?" Ennis said as they closed the door behind them.

"I don't know yet." Jack said. "But we didn't come all this way just to get turned away on a technicality." He pulled out his little phone book and thumbed through it until he came to his lawyer's number. A few minutes later he hung up the phone, waited until a few elderly residents passed by, and told Ennis the good news. "He says for us to go ahead and bring the ladies home. He's gonna take care a all the paperwork. He says it's mostly for protection of the residents so none of 'em go wanderin off without a place to stay."

"So we just walk them and their luggage right past the front office?" Ennis asked.

"I don't know." Jack said as they re-entered the small apartment after a little knock. "Is there a back entrance to this place?" He asked the twins.

"No." The twins both nodded their heads. "The only other entrance or exits are the fire escapes and nobody's allowed on them." Lily said.

"That way they can keep track of us." Lyla added.

Ennis walked over and looked out the window into the snow-covered yard below surrounded by a low brick wall. "Where's the fire escape?" he asked.

"End of the hall to the right." Lily answered. "But we're not allowed to use it."

"Well, we're leavin here shortly so it won't matter if we break a rule or two." Jack winked at them. "You ladies wait here. We'll be right back."

Ennis followed Jack out the door. "You thinkin a takin 'em down the fire escape?" Ennis asked as they pushed through the door with the big sign on it saying 'No Admittance'.

"Why not?" Jack asked as he hurried down the stairs with Ennis right behind him. "What are they gonna do; throw us out?"

Once they got to the ground floor they pushed the door opened and looked out. "We're inside the enclosed yard. Damn!" Jack said as they peered at their snow-covered surroundings.

"Hold the door." Ennis said walking out and going over to the wall staying close to the building so he couldn't be seen from the main entrance. He checked the area out and came back to Jack. "Alls we gotta do is get 'em over that wall. The parkin lot is right there. It ain't like there's no guards or nothin."

"You're kidding!" Jack was stunned at the idea. "You wanna take three old ladies and their luggage over a four-foot high wall, across a snow covered yard, through a hedge and have 'em walk half way across a large parkin lot in the snow?"

"You thinkin we can just take 'em down the stairs and walk out the front door without nobody stoppin us?" Ennis asked as they headed back up the stairs. "They seemed pretty sure to me that the Director a this place wasn't about to let 'em leave."

"Let's let them decide." Jack said as they walked into the room again.

"Decide what?" Mrs. Twist asked.

"Looks like there's two ways out a here, Ladies." Jack said. "We can take the elevator down, and walk out the front door."

"They'll never let us go!" Lily wailed.

"Especially now that it's snowin." Lyla added. "They don't let us out at all when the weather is bad."

"What's the other choice?" Mrs. Twist asked. "The fire escape?"

"It's three flights a stairs." Jack said. "Then we go over that garden wall, across the lawn to the parkin lot. You ladies think you can make that?"

"But we're not allowed on the stairs." Lily dissolved into tears again.

"Folks, we don't have a long time here to decide." Ennis said. "A red light come on when we opened that door. Someone could be on their way up here right now to see what's going on."

"You wanna leave here?" Jack asked. "We gotta go now."

"Ohhh" The three ladies looked at each other and shook their heads 'yes'.

They had three suitcases a piece. A large, a medium, and a small. Ennis and Jack each picked up a set. Mrs. Twist helped as they scrambled to get into their coats and gather their purses and quilts.

Ennis looked out the door and saw the hallway empty. "Let's go."

"Oh, I feel positively wicked." Lyla said as they walked through the fire escape door.

"Me too!" Lily said.

"Careful now ladies." Jack warned. "These stairs are kind a steep."

Ennis led the way, Jack followed, and the ladies came along behind. Slowly they made their way to the ground floor. They were about to open the door when they heard a man's voice calling down the stairs. "Anyone there? You know you're not supposed to use these stairs!" Then footsteps could be heard coming down the stairs.

"Hurry!" Ennis said as they made their way out the door and over to the wall. Ennis threw the suitcases he was carrying over the wall, lifted Lily up and sat her on the top. He then hoped up and over the wall lifting her down on the other side.

Jack tossed the suitcases he'd been carrying, lifted Lyla up, and sat her on the wall. Ennis helped her down on the other side. Jack then lifted his momma up, hopped over the wall, helped Mrs. Twist down and they took off across the snowy lawn, through the hedge, and out across the parking lot.

"Hey!" The young man wearing an attendant's uniform called out behind them. "You can't go out in this weather! You know the rules!"

They hurried on their way across the parking lot to the back of the truck where Jack unlocked the camper and the ladies got in. They then tossed the luggage in and Jack told them to have a seat quickly as they were taking off. "Ohh my goodness, oh my goodness!" The three ladies were laughing and crying.

Ennis and Jack jumped into the truck and drove off. A red-faced attendant chasing after them calling out threats. Jack drove over a curb, crushed a few bushes, but made it through the gate just before it closed.

Jack weaved his way in and out of traffic until he made it back up on the highway where he put his foot down. He didn't stop until they got all the way to Hutchinson. "I don't know about you ladies back there, but I'm starvin! How about we grab us some lunch at this little diner?"

The ladies were bubbling over with happiness and discussing their daring 'escape'. Ennis and Jack were a little more complacent about the whole thing.

"Nothing like a little adrenalin rush to work up the old appetite." Jack grinned as he ordered a big dinner.

"Remember, we got a long drive ahead a us." Ennis said. "I can drive some more if you want."

"No, you need to sleep." Jack said. "I can drive us home all right." With Jack driving, Ennis dosed off in the seat beside him, while the ladies chatted away in the dinette in the camper behind them.

They arrived in Lightning Flat right at six a.m. Sunday morning.

Mr. Twist was in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee when they all came through the door.

"Hello John." Lily and Lyla both said. "It's nice to see you again."

He gave a grunt, picked up his coffee cup and headed for the front room.

"I see he's his usual sweet self." Lily said and got a poke in the ribs from Lyla.

"That man's not ever gonna change, girls. We just got to learn to live with him." Mrs. Twist said with a shrug though she herself hadn't been able to in forty-five years.

Ennis and Jack carried the luggage into the twins bedroom as they went into spasms of delight over everything about it. They were happy to bid the ladies farewell for the time being, and took off for their cabin.

(Late October l985)

A week's work finished off the back porch which ran the entire length of the cabin, thirty-six feet. They made sure to use extra cement blocks underneath to support the weight of all the firewood they were planning on storying on it. Another few days of hard work and it was stacked full of firewood. Then it was time to plan for Farmer's Market.

Going to the Farmer's Market was a lot like Sale Day had been with booths set up all over town, including the town square. The only difference was this sale was all produce from the local area. Some already canned, or bottled. Some made into sweet confections waiting to be bought by hungry shoppers. And some items were to help preserve all the delicious items available.

Mr. Twist had opted to stay home, much to the delight of the others. Jack drove his momma and the twins in their truck with the camper so the ladies would have a place to rest when they got tired as it was sure to be an all day shopping trip. Ennis drove his old pickup as it had the largest cargo area in the back and they knew they were going to need it.

The variety of fruits and vegetables was vast and the prices more than reasonable. They made their selections carefully, with Jack and Ennis making trip after trip out to the pickup to load and cover everything up. They rested up a bit after lunch and went back at it again. The shopping stopped only when Jack informed the ladies that Ennis' truck was full, the camper was half full, and if they didn't stop shopping there would be no room to carry everyone home.

The next few weeks were spent processing everything. Half of the fruit and vegetables was canned, the other half frozen and packed into their freezers.

Readying a ranch for winter was no small task and they went at it with a vengeance. A mountain of firewood was chopped and stacked under tarps for both the house and the cabin. Repairs were made to the barn to give the horses as much protection from the weather as they could. Ennis and Jack made sure to keep at least a good supply of food in their cabin at all times, in case they ever got snowed in.

And that winter, they were glad that they did.

They went fishing every chance they got, and made sure all their freezers were packed full. They had one last hunting trip they needed to make. Mr. Hennessey had asked them for some venison as several customers had been asking for it. So a deer hunting trip was set up for the first week in November.

CHAPTER NINE

(November 1984)

(Author's note: I know nothing about bear hunting – nothing! This is all made up. Fiction!)

They spent the night at the campgrounds just outside Yellowstone Park entrance and got an early start in the morning, stopping at the Ranger station to check in as usual. What _was_ unusual for the morning was the crowd at the station, an abundance of Rangers, and everyone talking at once.

"What's goin on?" Jack asked a friendly face they had seen many times before, Ranger Max Biddle.

"Here you go!" Ranger Biddle called to the others hotly arguing in the middle of it all. "Here's just the two guys you need!"

The crowd parted and they could see Jason Caldwell, the senior Ranger on duty at the station, arguing with some long-haired guy dressed all in cammo.

"Ennis! Jack!" Ranger Caldwell called to them beckoning them over. "We got us a big problem here and we need your help!"

"The hell we do!" Cammo man spat out angrily.

"You two ever done any bear hunting?" Caldwell asked.

"No Sir." Ennis answered. "It's always been my policy to stay as far away from bears as possible."

"We just come to do a little deer huntin." Jack offered as they faced Caldwell and the scruffy lookin man before them.

"Couple a sissies lookin for a trophy for their mantle." Cammo man shook his bearded head with disgust. "I tell you I can do this alone. I don't need no fuckin backup!"

"You're not goin out there alone and that's final!" Ranger Caldwell yelled right back at him.

"What's goin on?" Ennis asked Caldwell as people crowed around in the tiny rangers station, everyone talking at once offering their opinions.

"I guess you ain't heard the news?" Caldwell asked looking from Ennis to Jack and back to Ennis again.

"What news?" They both asked at the same time.

"We had a fatality up here yesterday. A family; Mom, six year old girl, twelve year old boy, Dad, and the Dad's brother come up here to do a little campin." Caldwell explained. "A couple a bears come at 'em. One grabbed up the little girl. The brother tried to get her loose and got swatted a good one; the Uncle finally got to them, got the little girl loose but the bears killed him dead right there in front a the kids. The rest a the family made it to their truck and got out a there but the kids are both hurt pretty bad; they're in the hospital in Cody. We're lookin for some bear hunters to find those two bears and take 'em out."

"I tell you, Caldwell; I can do the fuckin job myself! I don't need no back up!" Cammo man was up in Caldwell's face again.

"This here is Simon LaBeaux." Caldwell said. "He and his partner have hunted bear for years and offered to go get them killer bears, but his partner's wife went into labor last night and he had to leave. Now LaBeaux wants to go up after 'em alone, and I'm sayin he can't without backup!"

"I don't know what help we can be, Caldwell." Ennis said with a shrug. "We ain't never hunted bear before."

"Couple a lily-livered pansies!" LaBeaux said in disgust. "I'd be baby-sittin 'em every step a the way; probably have to stop for tea at four o'clock."

"They go with you, or you're not goin!" Caldwell insisted.

"Now wait a minute." Ennis pulled on Caldwell's arm. "We didn't say we'd go!"

"Del Mar, we got nobody else willin to go up there with him." Caldwell said. "We got a take those bears out; and it ain't much different from the other huntin you been doin. The main difference is you won't have to worry none about bringin any a the meat back. All you got a do is take 'em out."

"But we don't know nothin about huntin bears!" Ennis insisted with the sick feeling that they were getting roped into something that they'd regret. "All we got is our 30.06s. Will that even take down a bear?"

"All you gotta do is follow Simon." Caldwell said as he handed them each a heavy Marlin 1895 rifle, a Glock pistol, and a couple boxes of ammo each. "He knows everything there is to know about bears. He can tell you all about 'em on the ride up. Just do whatever he says." And to Simon he added, "These two know how to handle themselves. Just get up there and get your job done; and make damn sure you bring these two back in one piece."

"Mother-fucking, son of a bitch!" Simon cursed as he walked out with Ennis and Jack trailing him. "I don't suppose the two a you know how to ride; do you?"

"Nah, we just bring our horses along with us to carry our purses." Ennis said as they climbed back into their truck, following Simon as he headed out.

"Shit!" Jack said. "How'd we get ourselves roped into this?"

"Hell, I don't know." Ennis said angrily as they made their way up the rocky trail. "If you have to shoot either a those – watch out; they're a lot heavier than our rifles and are gonna have a hell of a kick to 'em."

"Shit!" Jack said again as he fingered the two rifles standing in front of him. "You ever fire one a these things?"

"Yeah. Dad was nutty about guns and used to have all kinds of 'em." Ennis said. "If this guy is half as good as he thinks he is, maybe we won't have to. We're just here to watch his back; nothin more."

"Let's hope it turns out that way." Jack said with a sigh and a sense of foreboding he couldn't seem to shake.

When they reached the area where the trail became too narrow to drive, they parked their trucks, unloaded the horses and mounted up. Two hours later they came to a stop and dismounted.

"We're on foot from here on." Simon spoke to them for the first time since they left the Ranger station. "Make sure you have the safety on; I don't want either a you two assholes shootin me in the back."

Ennis and Jack gave each other a disgusted look.

"All right; let's go." Simon said. "The two a you stay well behind me, keep quiet, and watch where you step."

Two hours later, Ennis tossed a pebble at Simon's back and signaled to him to stop.

"What the hell is it? You got a tinkle or somethin?" Simon spat out in an angry whisper as he came a few steps back to join then.

"It don't feel right." Ennis said, looking around the area carefully.

"What the hell you talkin about? What don't feel right? " Simon asked.

"Look, it's true I ain't never hunted bear before; but I been huntin all my life and I know when things don't feel right." Ennis insisted.

"So what don't feel right; you're underwear creepin up on you or somethin?" Simon asked voice dripping with sarcasm.

"I can hear 'em." Ennis said. "They're all around."

"The bears? They're all around?" Simon chuckled and cocked his head to listen. "I don't hear a thing, Twist." He turned to leave, but Ennis stopped him with a hand on his arm.

"I'm tellin you, they are out there! I _hear _'em!" Ennis hissed.

"Take your hand off me! Don't touch me! Don't ever touch me!" Simon jerked free, stumbled and rolled about six feet stopping at the foot of a mountain of brown fur.

A giant paw swung at him as he scrambled to his feet, tumbling him across the trail, and ten feet down a rocky slope. Guns blazed as Ennis and Jack fired twice each taking the gigantic brown bear down.

Ennis scrambled over the edge and down to where Simon was wedged against a tree trunk, breaking his fall from a hundred-foot drop off.

"No, no!" Simon cried out in pain as Ennis tugged on him. "My shoulder... it's broken!" He gasped out. "My leg too! I'm a fuckin dead man!"

"Ennis! Come on!" Jack called to him. "There's more of 'em. I can hear 'em now."

Ennis grabbed the back collar of Simon's jacket and hauled him up the incline; Simon complaining all the way up.

"Let's get out a here." Jack said as he paced nervously watching the woods around them.

"He's hurt bad, Bud." Ennis said as he dropped his back pack and pulled his jacket off, then his sweatshirt wrapping it around Simon, securing his broken shoulder. "I need one a your sleeves."

"Huh?" Jack asked.

"Your sweatshirt. I need a sleeve." Ennis said as he examined the wound on Simon's head that had him woozy and bleeding profusely.

Jack removed his jacket clumsily as he juggled his gun.

"C'mere," Ennis said, pulling his knife out and slicing one of the sleeves from Jack's sweatshirt. He wrapped it around Simon's head, stemming the flow of blood as he grimaced in pain. "Reload, Jack. Both guns. You're gonna have to carry all three. Make sure you're ready to use 'em."

Jack reloaded both guns quickly after pulling his jacket back on. "Put your jacket on, Ennis. It's cold up here."

"See if you can get the Ranger station on your walkie-talkie. Tell 'em we're gonna need an ambulance when we get there." Ennis said slipping his jacket on, and reaching for his back pack pulling out his rope.

"What're you gonna do with that?" Jack asked. "We gotta get out a here now!" Another growl from the woods startled them both and roused Simon from his stupor.

"What're you doin?" Simon cried. "You're gonna tie me up and leave me here; **you fucking bastards!**"

"Get me a couple a those small branches." Ennis said. "We got a stabilize his leg."

"Ennis, we got no time." Jack said swinging the gun around and pointing it towards the woods where the rustling of leaves and branches were coming closer.

"Get 'em, Jack!" Ennis ordered as he cut two small lengths of rope.

"Hurry!" Jack said as he tossed two branches to Ennis.

Ennis broke them in about two-foot lengths, placed them against Simon's broken leg and began tying them into place. "You're gonna have to tie him to my back, Jack. He's in and out and he'll never be able to hold on."

"I don't like this, Ennis." Jack worried as the noises came closer.

"C'mere." Ennis said. "Give me a hand here." He hauled Simon over to a large rock and sat him upright.

"What're you doin?" Simon asked, terrified now as he too could hear the rustling and growling from the woods. "What're you gonna do?"

Ennis squatted in front with his back to Simon while Jack reluctantly laid his gun down and began winding the rope around and around the two of them; under Simon's butt and up over Ennis's shoulders and across his chest and back down again.

"You can't carry me!" Simon cried, "I'm two-fifty at least!"

"Help me up, Jack." Ennis said as he tried to stand and settle the load as best he could. It took a few moments to get his bearings. "You got a lead us out a here, Bud. You got those guns ready?"

"Yeah." Jack said, shouldering two of them and holding the third at the ready in front of him. "Let's just get out a here."

"Okay; go." Ennis said. "You see one bear, you take care of it. You see two; sing out, I'll sit down, you give me a gun. Got it?"

"Got it." Jack said as he started them out at a slow pace.

"Noise." Simon managed to croak out among his groans.

"Yes, we hear 'em." Ennis said.

"Sing." Simon said.

"Huh?"

"Sing! They hate the sound of human voices singing. They don't understand it." Simon explained.

"You're full a shit." Ennis grunted as he trudged along, every step a painful effort.

"No, I ain't!" Simon said and at that moment Jack stopped ahead of them.

Ennis and Simon looked up and saw a huge bear in the pathway in front of them.

"**I know a girl who lives on a hill; she won't but her sister will**!" Simon bellowed in a sing-song voice.

The bear darted back into the trees before Jack could fire.

"You kiddin me? Singin really works?" Ennis asked.

"It does. Sometimes." Simon admitted. "It depends on how hungry the bear is."

"This is prime eatin time for bears. Must be close to hibernatin time." Ennis said and they heard the bushes rustling right next to them.

"**I know a girl who lives on a hill.**" Simon bellowed.

Ennis joined in. Jack gave them a backward questioning glance then began to sing along with them.

"**I know a girl who lives on a hill. She won't but her sister will. Sound off. One, two. Sound off. Three, four. Sound off; one, two, three, four; one, two – THREE FOUR!" **They sang and sang until their throats were dry; and kept singing as they made their way slowly back the three miles to where they'd left their horses.

The noise, the rustling of the bushes, the occasional roars were all around them. The horses were in a panic straining to get free from where they'd been tied. Jack worked furiously to get the ropes loose, freeing Ennis from his load.

Ennis stretched his muscles, standing straight for the first time since Simon had been tied to his back.

"Get his horse over here." He said as he hauled Simon up to stand on his one good leg.

"It's no good." Simon said. "I can't ride out a here. I can't hold the reins."

"You won't need to." Ennis said as he and Jack shouldered Simon up into his saddle ignoring the groans and complaints.

"He's never gonna make it." Jack said.

"Oh yes he will. Us pansies are gonna see to it." Ennis said as he wound the rope round and round Simon's thighs and the horses body, securing the broken leg out front with a couple loops so it would hang freely, before tying Simon's one good hand to the saddle horn wrapping the rope round his wrist for good measure.

Jack was ready with their horses when Ennis finished and they began their slow descent down the rocky trail, Ennis leading Simon's horse by the reins and Jack bringing up the rear. They'd been on the trail about an hour when they came upon three people running downhill ahead of them; a couple with their young son, about ten years old.

Ennis dismounted quickly.

"There's bears... got our horses..." the man, out of breath, tried to explain.

"I know. They're all over the place." Ennis said, grabbing the boy and hoisting him up behind his saddle. "Get your wife up there behind Jack; hurry!"

The man did as he was told and Jack reached a hand down to help her up.

"I need you to ride behind our friend here. He's badly hurt – broken shoulder and leg. Hold him on so he don't fall off." Ennis helped him up and handed him the reins before hopping back up on his own horse in front of the boy.

"You hold on tight now son. We'll get ourselves out a this mess." Ennis said as they started back down the trail.

The boy did as he was told in silence; not speaking a word except at one time asking, "Can't we go any faster? Can't these horses run?"

"Not down hill on this rocky slope, boy. With all these rocks, he could take a fall and break a leg. Then none a us would make it out a here." Ennis explained.

A loud roar came from up ahead of them just as they came to a turn in the trail. "You hold on tight now boy. I might have to shoot and this gun has a kick to it. Don't let it jar you off."

The boy tightened his grip. Ennis pulled his rifle from its holster and looked back to see that Jack was doing the same thing.

Another roar and Simon set to bellowing again. "I know a girl... You are my sunshine, my only sunshine; you make me happy when skies are gray..." Jack and Ennis sang away at the tops of their lungs, urging their passengers to do the same.

They came around the turn and found two bears on the trail in front of them. Ennis stopped and sang louder. The bears didn't move; just stood there staring at the riders.

"Hang on boy!" Ennis said and fired at the animals twenty feet in front of them. His horse side stepped, frantic to be out of there. Ennis hit one bear in the shoulder, the second shot missed all together. The bears stood up and started towards them. Ennis slipped down off his horse, pulling loose from the boy's death grip, and stood facing the bears. He raised his gun and shot one in the face. Before he could take aim at the second one, Jack was there beside him and fired taking the second one down.

They remounted, waited a few minutes to make sure the bears were dead, before proceeding slowly around them and on down the trail.

"I thought you said bears were supposed to be afraid a singing?" The boy asked when they were on their way again.

"I guess them two never heard a that rule." Ennis said.

Another hour on the trail and they came to their trucks, relieved to find three ranger trucks waiting for them.

"Did you get 'em?" They were met with six heavily armed Rangers with a hundred questions a piece, everyone talking at once.

"Get your wife and boy in the back a that camper." Ennis told the man and handed him the keys to unlock the door.

"What can we do?" The Rangers all crowded around, terrified as more growling could be heard close by.

"Couple a you, get these horses trailered." Ennis said as he and Jack untied Simon. "The rest a you, get your asses down off a this mountain before you end up in one a those bears' bellies."

Jack and Ennis helped Simon over to their camper; hauled him inside and up on the bunk. Ennis pulled a sleeping bag out and covered him with it.

"What can I do to help?" The man with the family asked.

"Just see to your family." Ennis said as he pocketed the keys the man handed him. "We still got a ways to go to get down off this mountain."

Jack and Ennis jumped out, checked to make sure the horses were secure, and hopped into the cab. They were the second in line of vehicles headed down the mountain. One of the rangers was behind them driving Simon's truck and horse trailer, the other two ranger vehicles behind him.

The gruelingly slow descent began, the slippery rocks slip-sliding beneath their wheels. Ennis and Jack both sweating bullets in the cool November air, anxious to be out of there as quickly as possible. Around another draw and the Ranger vehicle in front of them came to a stop.

Ennis rolled down his window and called to them. The message came back "Bears ahead!"

Ennis and Jack got out, and walking down the trail about fifty feet in front of them they saw an small sized pickup on its side. The bears were pounding on it, rocking it back and forth.

"They haven't seen us." Ennis whispered to Jack. "You stay here and aim for that first one. I'm gonna get up in those rocks and see if I can get a shot at the second one. If they don't go down, you get yourself in that pickup with those rangers."

"On three?" Jack asked as Ennis walked away.

Ennis shook his head 'yes' as he made his way up into the rocks where he could see past the first bear. He turned to Jack and began the silent count. Two shots rang out simultaneously. One bear fell dead where it stood; the other reeled, and took a few steps back towards the woods before falling.

The horn on the over-turned pickup began sounding and Ennis called out, "Hello in the truck! Anyone there?"

"YES!" A head popped out of the window. "Two of us!"

"Well come on down out a there." Ennis said, in a hurry to be on their way again.

The boys banged and banged on the door, now facing skyward, but bashed in from the pounding it had taken. Ennis climbed up and tried to help but the door was stuck for good. "Gonna have to come out the window." He told them. Jack stood by and helped lower them down.

Twenty-two year old Karl McCoy and his eighteen year old brother Kevin were frantic to tell Ennis their story but he said they'd have to listen to it later and told them to head back to the camper and get in. The boys sat on the floor of the camper and exchanged worried glances with the petrified family huddling in the dinette. A quick glance up and they saw Simon. "What happened to him?" Karl asked.

"Did a bear get him?" Kevin asked, wide eyed in terror.

"I think so. There wasn't much time for talk." The man said. "They picked us up on trail on the way down. Bears got our horses."

Everyone cringed at that thought and said nothing more.

Ennis and Jack checked on the two Rangers in the lead vehicle and found them both in a bad state. One was staring straight ahead in a stupor, the other – the driver – was shaking so badly he couldn't speak. Ennis climbed up in the cab, shoved the driver over and started the truck. Jack hurried back to their truck, got in and drove. The group was on their way again.

By the time they reached the ranger station an hour later, it was packed with people. Twice as many rangers as before, and a bunch of angry visitors to the park arguing because they weren't being allowed to head up the trail.

They no sooner arrived then the wail of a siren was heard and an ambulance pulled in. Ennis and Jack helped them load Simon onto the stretcher and he was whisked away. The man and his family were standing by.

"You saved our lives and I don't even know your names." The man was saying with an out stretched hand.

"Ennis del Mar." Ennis said. "This here is Jack Twist." They shook hands.

"We're the Pearsons out of Cheyenne. I don't know how we can ever thank you for what you did." Mr. Pearson said standing with one arm around his wife and the other around his son.

"You can thank me by gettin your family down off a this mountain. Carefully! Go; now." Ennis insisted. "I got a bad feelin. I don't think this bear thing is over yet."

The Pearsons took off for their pickup. The McCoy boys stepped up beside Jack and Ennis as they made their way through the crowd into the Ranger station to return the guns.

"You boys got a ride home?" Ennis asked as they waited their turn to speak with Ranger Caldwell.

"No. We're gonna have to call our dad and have him come pick us up." Karl said.

"Where do you live?" Jack asked.

"Cody." Karl answered.

"We're goin through there. We can give you a lift." Jack offered after getting a nod from Ennis.

"You live in Cody?" Kevin asked eagerly.

"No." Jack answered. "The eastern part a the state, but we'll be drivin through Cody."

"Hey, they're the guys who when up there this mornin with LaBeaux!" Someone in the crowd called out. "Did you get 'em? Those bears that tore up those kids?"

Ranger Caldwell saw them then for the first time and asked. "Did you get 'em? How bad is Simon hurt?"

"Bear knocked him around a bit; busted his shoulder and leg." Ennis explained.

"But did you get the bears?" Several in the crowd asked.

"Did we get bears? Yes. Several." Ennis said. "Were they the ones who hurt the kids? We got no way a knowin that." Then to Caldwell he handed the guns back.

"What happened?" Caldwell asked.

"We come upon this bear; Simon was in the lead and the bear knocked him around. We got back to our horses and got out a there." Ennis said as they turned to leave.

"But did you get 'em all? Is it safe to go up there now?" Someone asked.

"I wouldn't go back up there right now for a million dollars!" Jack said.

"How many bears do you think are up there?" Caldwell asked.

"We got no way a knowin that." Ennis said, still trying to make their way out the door.

"Well how many did you actually see?" One of the Rangers asked.

"In the neighborhood a twenty or so. We didn't stop to count." Jack said.

"Twenty! That's impossible. Bears don't congregate in groups like that." Someone in the crowd said.

"You wanna go up there and tell them that; go ahead. We're out a here." Ennis said as he shoved the door open.

They stopped only to exchange a few words with Ranger Biddle as they left.

"What did he say?" Ranger Caldwell asked as Biddle made his way up to him.

"He said if I had any pull at all, I'd get all these people to go home, close up this station and get down off this mountain. I agree with him, Caldwell. You got no idea what it was like up there. It was like a horror movie. There was growling and howling all around us. We could hear them moving in. I've never been so scared in my whole life. Our two new guys are both in shock; they took them in the ambulance along with LaBeaux. I might get fired for this, but I'm leaving – right now. I suggest you do the same."

Everyone was stark silent for a moment and then a mass exodus was made for the parking lot; including Caldwell and Biddle. In moments the station was empty and a long ribbon of vehicles crept slowly down the mountain side.

"Are you sure you won't come in?" Karl pleaded through the open pickup window. "Our folks are gonna want to meet you."

"Nah." Ennis shook his head. "We just wanna get on down the road towards home."

"Boys? Is that you?" A man called from the doorway.

"Thanks again." Karl said and backed away as the pickup pulled away from the curb.

"Dad!" Kevin ran to his dad who had stepped outside. "Dad!" the boy cried and flung himself into his father's arms.

"Oh my God, Dad!" Karl cried and ran to them, hugging them both. "We made it! We made it!" Both boys cried as they clung to their Dad.

"What's going on?" Mrs. McCoy asked as she came outside. "I thought you boys were going camping? Where's your truck? Did you break down?"

"Inside, inside." Mr. McCoy said sensing something serious had happened as he ushered his family back indoors. "No need in entertaining the whole neighborhood."

"Mom!" The boys hugged her close, laughing and crying at the same time. "We made it!"

"Jesus!" Mr. McCoy swore. "What happened to you? Where'd you get those bruises?"

"You had an accident!" Mrs. McCoy said as she examined her sons' faces up close. "We need to get you to the hospital!"

"No, no, Mom." Karl got his voice back first. Kevin still sobbed as he clung to first one confused parent and then the other. "You're not gonna believe what happened. We're all right, just a few bruises. Others weren't so lucky."

"Please, please tell me you were no where near that area where the bears were we heard about on the news?" Mrs. McCoy begged.

"You know about the bears?" Kevin raised his tear stained face from his father's shoulder and asked.

"It was on the news tonight." Mr. McCoy said. "Some kids got mauled by a bear and some bear hunters went up after it and got mauled too. You weren't anywhere near that area; were you? Don't you usually go to the west side of the park? They said this bear thing happened on the east side."

"Everyone sit down." Karl said patiently. "Please, Mom – Dad. We'll tell you everything."

"All right, all right." Mr. McCoy said. "But first tell me; do I need to call a tow truck to go get your pickup?"

"No. It's beyond repair." Karl shrugged as he sat on the footstool in front of his father's chair.

"Then you _did_ have an accident?" Mr. McCoy asked.

"No. Jeez." Karl said running a hand through his tangled hair.

"Just tell 'em, Karl!" Kevin said. "It was the bears!"

"Oh my God!" Mrs. McCoy panicked. "I knew you were talking about finding a new place to camp, but I never for a minute thought you were up on that mountain!"

"Now, now, everyone just calm down." Mr. McCoy tried to calm everyone including himself down.

"You're not hurt? They didn't get to you?"

"We only just got there, Dad." Karl explained. "We didn't go all the way up, Mom. Only part way. We drove until we saw this little clearing and pulled off the road. We just got our tent out and started setting it up."

"And then they were all around us!" Kevin nearly shrieked. "Four of 'em!"

"We heard a growl, saw the bears and took off for the truck." Karl said.

"They followed us and began banging on the truck and rocking it back and forth." Kevin said, breathless to get the story out.

"That's how we got the bruises." Karl said. "We were tumbling around inside the cab, getting thrown all over the place."

"Oh my God!" Mrs. McCoy cried as she clung to her sons.

"Then they turned us over!" Kevin added.

"The truck went over on its side. I thought we were goners for sure. The driver's side window was open and I was sure they'd be able to reach in and grab us but I guess they didn't think of that. When I tried to roll it up, I couldn't. I guess they'd bashed in the side enough so that it wouldn't work."

"But you're here and you're all right; so I guess they went away after they found they couldn't get to you?" Mr. McCoy asked. "What did you do; thumb a ride home? You should have called from the Ranger station. We'd have come picked you up."

"No, they didn't go away." Kevin said. "They just kept pounding and rocking – I didn't think they were ever gonna stop."

"I don't know how long it went on." Karl said. "It felt like hours and hours. I tried honking the horn, hoping the noise would scare them away but it just seemed like it made them try even harder to get to us."

"One bear was biting on the door; trying to rip it away!" Kevin added.

"All the sudden, just about the time we figured we were goners, we heard gun shots!" Karl said. "Then someone was calling, 'Hello in the truck; anybody in there?"

"I never been so happy to see somebody in my whole life!" Kevin said and sagged against his mother's shoulder, adrenalin finally spent.

"I stuck my head out the window and two guys were there. They helped us climb down, we had to go through the window. The door was too bent up and we couldn't get it open. They brought us back down the mountain, along with another family they found on the trail. The bears got to their horses and they took off running, the three of them. A mom, dad and boy; and another guy who got mauled. They took him off in an ambulance when we got down to the Rangers station."

"So the rangers picked you up?" Mr. McCoy breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God for those boys!"

"No; it wasn't Rangers, Dad. It was Ennis del Mar and Jack Twist. They saved our lives, Dad." Karl said.

"Well who are they?" Mrs. McCoy asked.

"A couple a guys the rangers sent up after the bears." Karl said.

"Must a been a couple a bear hunters they sent up to get the ones that hurt those kids." Mr. McCoy said.

"So who brought you home; the Rangers?"

"No, Dad; it was Ennis and Jack!" Kevin said.

"Well why didn't you invite them in?" Mrs. McCoy asked. "We would love to be able to meet them and thank them."

"They just wanted to get on home." Karl explained. "They live somewhere over on the east part of the state and they have a long drive ahead of them."

"We'll speak to the Rangers tomorrow and find out where we can get in touch with them." Mr. McCoy said. "Right now we're just glad to have you both home safe and sound."

"I didn't think we were ever going to see you again." Karl said, choking up again as the tears slid down his bruised cheeks.

"I don't wanna go camping again ever, ever!" Kevin said as he buried his face against his mother's shoulder again.

"I lost my truck, Dad." Karl said in tears again and very little of it had to do with his truck.

"Don't worry about the truck, Son." Mr. McCoy said, reaching out and embracing his son. "The two of you are safe. That's all that matters."

The next day Jack and Ennis were telling the folks all about their bear hunt. Mrs. Twist gasped in terror. Mr. Twist sneered, "You two bring any pop corn to go along with your little fairy tale?"

"It happened, Dad! I swear it did!" Jack said.

"Oh come quick!" Lily called. "It's on the news!"

They all traipsed into the living room to see what she was so excited about. The local newsman was interviewing someone in a hospital bed. What they saw was an edited version of the actual interview.

Actual interview with Simon LaBeaux . . .

"Mr. LaBeaux, how are you feeling?"

"How the hell do you think I'm feelin? I just got the shit knocked out a me by a fuckin bear!"

"A... Mr. LaBeaux – this is a live interview." The man with the microphone said.

"So? I'm supposed to be fuckin prince charmin? Go to hell!"

"This is not going to do." Microphone man said, turning away from Simon's hospital bed. "We can't put any of this on the air."

"No shit?" Simon asked. "You guys really from the fuckin TV news?"

"We are, Mr. LaBeaux; but we can't air an interview laced with profanity."

"No kiddin?" Simon said as he sat up a little straighter in his bed and with his one good hand smoothed down his wild frizzy hair, and then his beard. "Shit, you guys look like you're still in high school. I figured this was just for a fuckin class project or somethin."

"See those letters on the side of that camera? That's the local affiliate for the NBC news. With any luck, this could go national!" Microphone man's eyes lit up at the prospect.

"That thing on his shoulder is a fuckin camera?" Simon asked.

"Of course! What did you think it was?" Microphone man asked.

"How the hell should I know?" Simon asked. "I figured it was just another fuckin piece of medical equipment to run another fuckin test on me. That nurse out there – the one with the big tits – every so often she drags me out a here for more tests, or drags more fuckin people in here for tests."

"Mr. LaBeaux, we'd very much like to do an interview with you about your mishap up on that mountain, but we cannot air anything with profanity – ah – swearing in it." Microphone man said. "So if you'd like to see yourself on television, you're going to have to clean up your language."

"Okay, okay. I can do that. I got people out there will wanna hear what I gotta say. I can fuckin do this." Simon assured them.

"All right then. Let's can try this again." Microphone man said and walked back over to the side of Simon's bed.

"Turn your fuckin camera on, buddy. I got a story to tell and you're fuckin gonna love this!"

"Mr. LaBeaux, please – your language!"

"Oh yeah, sure. We ain't started yet though." Simon said.

"We are starting right now." Microphone man cleared his throat before beginning. "Mr. LaBeaux, can you tell us what happened? Did you see any bears up on that mountain?"

Simon's mouth dropped open and he said nothing.

"Mr. Labeaux?" Microphone man stuttered nervously.

"That's a fuckin stupid question!" Simon said.

Microphone man turned away, exasperated.

"Just ask him what happened." The camera man suggested.

"Last chance, Mr. LaBeaux." Microphone man warned.

"Well, you don't come into a man's hospital room that's just been mauled by a fuckin bear and ask him if he's seen any fuckin bears! What kind a dumbass question is that?"

Microphone man cleared his throat, straightened his tie, and began again. "Mr. LaBeaux, can you tell us exactly what happened?" He turned from the camera and gave Simon a warning look.

"I got a call from Ranger Caldwell tellin me how a couple a bears got after some kids and killed their uncle. He wanted me and my partner Eugene to go up and see if we could find 'em and … take 'em out. You know … make the place safe for the other campers and hunters who go up there." Simon said, proud of himself for completing three sentences without using any swear words.

"We was gettin ready to go when Eugene got a call from his old lady. She's knocked... she's expectin and she was in labor and he had to take off to take her to the hospital. So when I got to Caldwell at the Ranger station, he was pi... um... mad, and said I couldn't go up after them bears alone. Said I had to have backup. Now, I didn't want no fu … um … backup, and we was arguin when in walks two cowboys who come up there deer huntin. Caldwell knew 'em and said they was gonna go up the mountain with me; be my backup.

"These cowboys, they didn't want no part a bear huntin, and I didn't want no part of them; but Caldwell insisted, and he's the man with the badge, so the three a us headed out. I figured I was gonna have to babysit 'em all the way up and back."

"These two cowboys, Mr. LaBeaux. Did you get their names?" Microphone man asked turning to make sure his profile was perfect for the camera.

"Huh? Oh yeah. Jack Twist and Ennis del Mar." Simon said. "Don't know where they're from; they didn't say and I didn't ask."

"Please go on with your story, Mr. LaBeaux."

"We drove up as far as we could, and went the rest a the way on horseback. We was well into the upper area … where the fu … um... where the bears hang out and I figured we'd best dismount and go the rest a the way in on foot. I figured the cowboys would complain about that, but they never did. I give 'em the speech about keepin the safety on until I say so, keepin quiet, all that sh... stuff; and they agree, so we take off.

"We walked for some time, 'bout an hour or two I guess, and Ennis grabs my arm. Now, I was close to deckin him 'cause I don't like nobody touchin me. Nobody! But real quiet like he whispers that things don't feel right to him. I figured he was just gettin scared and wantin to go home, so I warn him about touchin me and told him to shut up and let me do the thinkin. We walked a little bit farther and damned, darned, I mean darned if he don't grab me again sayin he could hear 'em. The bears. He said he could hear 'em in the woods. I listened but didn't hear nothin. I give it to him once again about touchin me and turned back to the trail, and I'm not sure what happened but next thing I knew I was on the ground rollin. When I come to a stop, all I could see was fur and this giant paw comin for me. I tried to get out a the way but all a the sudden my shoulder exploded and I was flyin across the trail and down an embankment where I slammed into a tree.

"Guns were goin off like crazy and it sounded like the whole fu… world was explodin. I think I passed out then, cause suddenly someone was pullin on me. I thought it was the bear and I was gonna be his lunch; but it turned out it was Ennis. He come down over that embankment after me; maybe ten or fifteen feet down, close to a big drop off. If that tree hadn't a caught me, I'd a been mashed on those rocks below.

"So anyway, Ennis tries to get me to stand up and I can't; my leg was broken. So he got a hold a my jacket and pulled me back up till we was up on the trail again and I see two a the biggest bears I ever seen in my fu... life, layin dead. I figured, good, the job was done. We didn't have nothin to worry about from now on but I was dead wrong. I could hear 'em then. Ennis was right. They were all around us in the trees. You could hear 'em prowlin around, growlin. I figured I was dead meat for sure then. I'm well over two hundred pounds, and these two cowboys weren't exactly muscle men, if you get my drift.

"They don't hardly talk, just kind a nod and grunt to one another so I didn't know what was goin on half the time. Next thing I knew, Ennis is pullin off his sweatshirt and wrappin my busted shoulder, and fixin a splint for my leg, while Jack was reloadin the guns and standin guard. I do remember Jack tellin Ennis we gotta hurry and get the h... get out a there. Then Ennis pulls this rope out and has Jack rope me to his back! I never heard a such a thing, but that Ennis – man – he carried me all the way back down that trail to where our horses were. Jack walked in front carryin all three a those guns, and they ain't light! He had to fire a couple a times at them da... darn bears to get 'em off the path in front of us.

"I told 'em about singin. You know; it's said that bears hate the sound of human singin; fear it or somethin. So we started singin."

"What did you sing?" Microphone man asked.

"Huh? Oh, that song about the girl who lives on a hill. Um. . . You are my Sunshine. That's about all I could remember. I know I passed out a couple a times. I come awake when I heard the growlin up close."

"So once you reached the horses, you were able to ride back to your vehicles without any more trouble?" Microphone man asked.

"Oh he... heck no. It just kept gettin worse and worse. Once we got to the horses, they were wild with fear. They could hear the bears out there growlin, and it seemed to me like they was all around us. It took some time, but Ennis and Jack managed to get them horses still enough and they loaded me up on mine and tied me into the saddle. We took off then, but I didn't think I'd be able to stay in that saddle. The horses was all jittery, and wantin to run. Ennis had a hard time holdin 'em all down to a walk."

"Why didn't he want to run? You were tied into the saddle. I would think he'd want to get out of that area as quickly as possible?" Another stupid question from Microphone man.

Simon stared at the man for a moment before answering. "When you're on a rocky downhill path, the last thing you wanna do is run. Those rocks'll slip out from under the horses feet and you'll end up either ass over tea kettle rollin down the mountain side, or in some bears belly!"

"Oh, of course. Of course." Microphone man said thinking immediately that he'd have that question and answer edited out. "Please go on with your story."

"I don't remember a lot about that ride except that I passed out a couple a times. It seemed like all the sudden the rope was jerkin me, and what was happenin was that it was holdin me from fallin off. I come awake one time when I heard a lot a noise. People noise, not the bear noise from the woods. At first I thought we had made it down the mountain, but then I see this family. Man, woman, and boy. They was all talkin at once about bears eatin their horses. Ennis told 'em right off to all be quiet. He then slung the boy up on his horse, told the man to put his wife up behind Jack, and told the man he would have to ride with me and that he was to hold me into the saddle cause I was bad hurt. We wasn't stopped but a minute, it seemed like, and we started down again. I don't remember much past then. I remember Ennis and Jack puttin me in their camper up in the bunk and coverin me; and I remember stoppin a couple a times and guns goin off. That's all I remember.

"That's all I got a say about it. Next thing I knew I was here in this bed and people were stickin needles in my arm and pokin and proddin me."

"I want to thank you for the interview, Mr. LaBeaux; is there anything you'd like to say to folks out there about hunting or camping this time of year?"

"Yeah, I got somethin to say about that." Simon said. "November is prime eatin time for bears. They need all the meat they can get to make it through the winter. Unless you're an experienced hunter, it's just da... darn foolish to go high up in those woods. And I got somethin else I wanna say too." Simon said, sitting up a little straighter.

"Ennis del Mar – Jack Twist – if you see this news report, I wanna say thank you! I know I treated you like sh... I shouldn't a, and I wanna apologize for that. You saved my life and you didn't have to. I won't never forget it."

"Thank you Mr. LaBeaux." Microphone man started to pull back.

Simon grabbed the microphone. "I wasn't finished! Ennis, Jack, you ever need a helpin hand – you just call on me. I'll be there for you just like you were for me! Call me! We'll go huntin sometime!"

"Thank you Mr. LaBeaux." Microphone man got control once again and backed out of the room; his camera man following close behind.

"Looks like we've made us a friend for life." Jack said.

"Uh." Ennis grunted. "Not exactly the kind a friend I'm lookin to have."

"It happened exactly the way you said it did!" Mrs. Twist grinned and gave her son a hug.

"Nonsense!" The old man scoffed. "Bears don't gather in bunches like that, and there's no way in hell he could a carried that man on his back like that for miles. It's all bullshit. And you women – you're just gullible enough to believe it." He grabbed up the remote and changed the channel settling down in his chair to watch some old western movie.

CHAPTER TEN

(December 1984)

November slowly gave way to December winds and snow. A few calls came in for handy man jobs, but most of the time was spent indoors out of the weather. Christmas was a somber day. Jack and Ennis ate dinner up at the house with the family. More for the ladies than anything else. It was spent mostly speaking softly so as not to arouse the old man's anger – he was already in a foul mood about everything he could think of.

They left shortly after dinner glad to be back in their cabin again. Cold as it was, it was still better than having to be around the old man. Once they got a fire going in the fireplace, their candles lit all around, and a couple quilts to wrap up in, they were comfortable. It was a bonus that their couch folded out into a queen sized bed. They slept there warm and cozy, keeping a fire going in the fireplace most of the night. Life was good for them. At least tucked away in their cabin it was.

(January 1985)

The snow began in the fall as usual and with it came a number of jobs hauling away downed trees, or repairing fences taken down by the storms. As winter progressed, the storms were worse, lasted longer, and caused more damage. They did as much as they could but when the roads became too treacherous, they began turning down the jobs. It just wasn't worth the risk of the long drive on icy roads, pulling the flatbed loaded with trees, out in the wind, rain, sleet and snow.

They had been taking the horses out to pasture every day and bringing them back into the relative comfort of the barn evenings. As the snow began to accumulate deeper and deeper, they kept the horses inside for longer periods of time.

It was mid January and the storm that just passed brought their snow drifts almost up to the door handles on their pickups. Ennis stood out front gazing at the sky.

"You think the worst is over with now?" Jack asked as he too looked at the sky but saw nothing but the cold grayness of winter.

"Uh uh." Ennis said as he moved to another position and gazed at the sky in a different direction.

"There's more comin?" Jack asked.

"Over there." Ennis pointed to the north. "See that dark line just above the horizon?"

"Yeah." Jack shrugged. "What about it?"

"See how it makes its way all around?" He pointed off in a wide circle.

"Is that more snow?" Jack asked.

"Not just snow." Ennis stuck his hand back into his jacket pocket. "Storm's comin. Bad one."

"But that's a long distance off." Jack said. "Maybe it won't come this way."

"It's all around, Jack." Ennis said. "Now look back where you first looked for the line."

"Yeah." Jack said. "What about it?"

"Look all around." Ennis said.

Jack looked at the horizon full circle.

"What do you see?" Ennis asked.

"I see the dark line." Jack said. "Same as before."

"Nah; it's not the same." Ennis corrected him. "It's thicker."

Jack took another look. "I guess it is; a little. What does that mean?"

"It means it's travelin fast. And it's comin in from the north, east, and west." Ennis said.

"We best get up to the house and see if the radio or TV has anything to say about it." Jack suggested.

It took them some effort but they were able to get their truck going and made their way up to the house.

"It's clear as day out there right now." The old man said. "So what if we get another storm? It's January. Winter. It's supposed to snow."

"Sir," Ennis spoke directly to him. "This is gonna be a bad one. It'd maybe be a good idea if you brought your cows in. We can pull our tractor out a the barn, and if you pull yours out too, there should be enough room."

"Nonsense!" The old man scoffed. "Cows can take the cold. They always have. I sure as hell ain't gonna start babyin 'em now."

"Dad, how about at least bringin in the pregnant ones? If you lose those calves, you'll have nothin to pay the taxes with." Jack warned.

"I been ranchin all my life; years before either one a you were even born. You think you know more about cows than I do?" The old man challenged.

"This ain't about who knows the most, Dad." Jack said trying to calm the situation. "We already got drifts out there five and six feet deep!"

"Sir," Ennis butted in. "Normally we get a storm in from the north, or the east, or the west. One direction or the other. This time, it's comin in from all directions. It's comin in fast and it's comin in hard."

"How about if we bring 'em in for you." Jack suggested. "You don't wanna take the risk a losin them calves."

"**You touch one a my cows and I'll have the sheriff on you!**" The old man bellowed. "Now get on out a here and leave me to my TV show."

They turned to leave and walking past the twins and Mrs. Twist, Jack said. "You got anythin outside that might blow away, Momma; you best bring it in."

"Anythin that can possibly blow away, _will_ blow away." Ennis warned before the two of them made their way out the back door.

They headed through the snow-covered yard to the barn where they went in and covered the horses with their blankets and made sure they had plenty of feed and water. "Give 'em plenty." Ennis said as he and Jack filled the water and food containers. It might be a couple a days before we can get back out here again."

They put down another bale of hay before heading out to their truck. The wind had gotten up and the snow had started again. They made a stop at the pump house and got enough meat for a week and plenty of ice.

"Maybe it won't be so bad." Jack said as they hauled more firewood in when they got back to their cabin.

"Figure all the storms we had so far," Ennis said.

"Yeah?" Jack asked.

"Then figure 'em all hittin at the same time." Ennis said as he got a fire started.

"Jesus!" Jack said as he looked out the window, past the dangling icicles that hung from the eaves, and peered at the darkening sky. "You think the folks will be all right?"

"Yep." Ennis said. "If there's one thing your daddy's good at it's keepin a fire goin all the time. They'll be okay. Can't say the same for their cows though. Hope he can stand a heavy loss. He's gonna have one."

The storm raged for five long days and nights without let up. The sixth day they were greeted with sunshine when they peered out the front window.

"It's over?" Jack asked with a happy grin.

"Looks like it finally passed." Ennis said.

"Why do you look so worried?" Jack asked.

"I was thinkin about your dad's herd." Ennis said.

"Yeah; I been wonderin about that myself." Jack said. "What do you think his loss will be?"

"I'm bettin at least fifty percent." Ennis said. "We should a insisted he bring 'em in. Or brought 'em in ourselves."

"He didnt' want us touchin 'em." Jack reminded him.

"I know; but we both know he's a fool. We should a thought more about the animals than him." Ennis said.

"Let's get some breakfast and go take a look." Jack suggested.

They saddled up the horses and rode out as far as they could; the horses happy to be out of the barn, but were struggling in the deep snow.

"Where are they?" Jack asked gazing into the pasture. "I can't see a one of 'em."

"Maybe he moved 'em into the other pasture." Ennis suggested and they rode slowly over to the south west pasture where they came upon Mr. Twist standing and staring out over the field where his herd lay in huge frozen snow-covered mounds.

Not a word was spoken as Ennis and Jack dismounted and made their way across the top of the fence and out to mound after mound to see if by any chance they might find one alive. They didn't.

The old man turned and walked back through the hip-deep snow to the house.

Jack and Ennis rode back to the barn, unsaddled the horses who were glad to be back inside he barn. They cleaned the stalls, and put out a fresh supply of food and water. With quiet resignation the two of them headed for the house.

Mr. Twist was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee when they walked in. They sat at the table and Mrs. Twist placed cups of coffee in front of them.

"This is all your fault!" Mr. Twist said.

"Our fault?" Jack was stunned by the accusation. "How is it our fault? We warned you!"

"Nobody said nothin about no five day storm! But you knew!" He shook a finger at the both of them. "The two a you knew! I don't know how – maybe you know someone at the weather station who tole you; but you knew!"

"We told you it was going to be a bad one." Ennis said as Jack seemed to be in shock at his dad's vicious accusations.

"You never said nothin about it lastin for five days though; did ya?" The old man began raising his voice. "You took care a them horses a yours, but you did nothin at all to protect my cows!"

"They're all gone?" Mrs. Twist asked. Mr. Twist obviously hadn't told her.

"Yes, Momma." Jack said. "Every single one."

"How was I supposed to know?" The old man defended himself against the accusing eyes staring at him. "Weather man said a storm! Them cows have been through a hundred storms before! He didn't say it was gonna last five days! There's no way I could a known that."

"Dad, we tried to tell you, but you wouldn't listen." Jack insisted.

"Now don't you go blamin me for this! You knew! The two a you knew!" He accused.

"But... without the calves... we won't be able to pay the taxes." Mrs. Twist began to tremble.

"Me and Ennis'll find work in the spring, Momma. We'll pay the taxes." Jack said as he went to his momma and put his arms around her.

Ennis stared at the old man and tried to figure out if he was actually that dense or if he really believed what he was saying. Was it possible that he didn't remember them begging him to bring the herd in?

"Without a herd, we got nothin!" The old man groused. "No money to pay the bills, no money for food, nothin! We'll lose the ranch for sure now."

"No, we're not gonna lose the ranch!" Jack said and gave Ennis a pleading look.

"We'll take care a the bills." Ennis said and after a minute added, "And we'll replace the herd."

"With what?" The old man sneered. "You got some secret stash a money hidden out in that cabin a yours?"

"Like Jack said. We'll find us some work and we'll take care a things." Ennis said. "It won't be done right away. It'll take a little time, but with the two a us workin we can handle the bills and build the herd up a little at a time."

"I had fifty pregnant cows!" The old man snorted. "You got any idea what they were worth?"

"You had fifty cows, Dad; only twenty of 'em were pregnant." Jack corrected him.

"They was all bred; and each one of 'em was carryin." The old man insisted.

Ennis slid his chair back, the scraping noise cut the tension in the air. "We'll replace the herd and take care a the bills." Ennis said and gave a nod to Jack that he wanted to leave.

"Now wait a minute here." Mrs. Twist interrupted the angry men. "With the calves we sold in November, we got enough to pay this year's taxes and pay our own bills. What we won't have is a bunch a calves to sell come this comin November. So we got plenty a time before we got a worry about next year's taxes."

"You never know when to keep your mouth shut, woman!" The old man complained. "This here is men's business. You need to keep out a it."

"You need help with the bills, Momma, you let us know." Jack said.

"And the taxes!" The old man pounced on them. "Don't forget; you said you'd pay the taxes."

Jack turned back to him to say more, but Ennis pulled him back towards the door.

"Next year's taxes." Ennis said as he ushered Jack out the back door.

"What did we just get ourselves into?" Jack said as the two of them trudged back across the field towards their cabin.

"We was gonna look for work anyway." Ennis said. "We'll find somethin. If not in Gillette, then we'll try in Sheridan. We got experience now in construction. We ought to be able to find somethin."

"We still got that sixty-five hundred I transferred up here from Childress." Jack reminded him. "Why don't we just use that?"

"No." Ennis shook his head. "That's our safety net. We don't wanna touch it. We can find us some kind a work. Our first priority has got a be replacin the herd, then savin for next years taxes. We don't wanna get behind on them taxes. You do, and first thing you know, they take your ranch."

"That's a whole lot a money goin out; and none comin in." Jack said as they struggled through the snow.

"We still got a about twelve hundred in the bank... money that the two a us earned." Ennis said. "That'll get us through for a while. I don't trust the old man. Before we go and pay any a their bills, we wanna have the bills in our hands and take 'em in to town and pay 'em ourselves. I don't wanna be handin him no cash money."

"I agree." Jack said then asked. "You think he really don't remember us tellin him the storm was gonna be bad and he should bring the herd in?"

"I don't know." Ennis said. "I was tryin to figure that out. Either he don't remember, or he's hopin we don't remember."

"Or he could be just workin us." Jack said.

"True." Ennis agreed. "But how can you tell? And what could we do about it even if he is fakin it? The herd is gone. And there's no way they can keep the place afloat without a herd."

"I know." Jack conceded. "I just hate to let him get away with it is all."

"So do I, Bud; but it ain't just him we got a worry about. There's your momma, and the twins. We got a think about them."

"You're right." Jack said and cursed. "I just keep thinkin about all the things we planned to do this spring. I really wanted to get that porch built on the house for Momma and the twins to sit out on. And a front porch for us as well."

"We can still do all a that, Jack." Ennis assured him. "It'll just take a little longer, that's all." But he was concerned about that himself. All the plans they'd made for the ranch while sitting for endless hours in front of the fireplace, all the improvements to their cabin, all the things they were going to do on their part of the ranch – all if it was in jeopardy now. It would be years before they'd be able to do any of them. There was one thing he knew for sure and that was that the herd needed to be replaced; and he and Jack were the only ones capable enough to do it.

It took a few days for the weak January sunshine to melt enough of the snow away for them to be able to make it into town. They tried Gillette first and found Mr. Elliott in his office. He was very sorry but with his two regular men back at work, there was no way he could take them back on. He did say he'd keep their phone number handy and if a job came along where he needed a couple of extra hands, he'd be sure to call them.

They tried the other construction company in town, but they had a full crew and weren't hiring. They stopped and bought a newspaper and read through the ads. Nothing was listed that they felt like they could do. The next day they tried Sheridan. Nothing was available. Mid January just was not the time of year to be looking for work.

"We'll find work." Jack said as he came and joined Ennis sitting on the couch staring into the fire.

"I know." Ennis agreed but his mood didn't brighten. "I was just thinkin. Last January I was in the same fix. Out a work and not a job in sight."

"Well this year is a lot different. We got our cabin, our freezers are still more than half full. And we got at least a year before we got a come up with the taxes." Jack smiled and added. "And you got me!"

"Yeah. And that's the best part." Ennis grinned and linked arms with Jack gripping his hand. "At least we got the Handy Man thing goin. I'm thinkin we maybe ought to advertise in Sheridan and Buffalo too. Since we ain't got steady work, maybe we could make up for it with those little jobs."

"Good idea." Jack grinned. "See all you needed was me here beside you and you come up with all kinds a great ideas."

Ennis gave out a little snort. "I got an idea right now that's pretty great."

"What?" Jack asked.

"How about the two a us get naked, see what develops?" Ennis grinned.

"Ya see there, all you needed was me to inspire you." Jack hopped up and began working the buttons on his shirt.

"Yes sir, Jack Twist. You certainly are one to inspire a fella."

"Not just any fella, Cowboy. Just you!" Jack said and that ended the conversation.

One good thing did happen in January. They got a nice fat check in from the Jewelry store in Denver where Jack had left his jewelry on consignment. It seems the Christmas season did well for them and most every one had sold.

Slowly the Handy Man jobs started coming in again. It wasn't steady work by any means; but it did create a little bit of a cash flow and enough to take care of the electric and phone bills for the folks. The old man's Social Security check was enough to buy what few groceries they needed.

By March the snow was gone and it was time to start on their fencing project that was going to cost them nothing as they already had the supplies they needed. The one thing they did buy though, was a post hole digger.

By the time April came around, they bought four cows with calves. It wasn't much, but it was a start. The old man complained loud and long. They weren't the right breed, they weren't the right size, they weren't as good a quality as his, they weren't bought at the right price or at the right dealer.

Jack and Ennis ignored the old man's complaints and went about their business. By July they had their entire back section fenced in and most of the center section, making sure to fence off the little pump house where all their freezers were stored. The old man continued to complain. They were wasting their time fencing in the back area when they had no cows to pasture there, they were putting up the fencing wrong, and if they were going to re-fence the place, they should be doing the front area where it needed it the most.

End of July they bought another six cows with calves.

"That still ain't enough!" The old man groused. "I lost fifty cows; not ten! It won't bring in enough to pay the taxes."

"It's a start, Dad." Jack said exasperated by his father's lack of appreciation. "By November market, we'll pick up some more."

"November is the worst time to be buyin." The old man argued. "November is for sellin – not for buyin. You best save your money for taxes."

"Okay, we can wait for spring then." Jack said walking away knowing there was no way to please the old man.

First week in August brought in a big paying job and they brought home five more cows with calves.

"Fifteen ain't fifty." The old man just huffed and walked away.

"I wonder." Ennis said as he watched the old man disappear into the barn.

"What?" Jack asked.

"I wonder if that man ever cracked a smile in his whole life?" Ennis asked and gave Jack a little shoulder bump. "Do you suppose anythin ever happened to him that he approved of?"

"I doubt it." Jack grinned as they headed on back to their cabin. He didn't really care. They had replaced fifteen of the fifty cows and he was pleased with that.

They were unable to find steady work that summer and some months were pretty lean; but they got by on their tight budget with their Handy Man jobs. Most of their time was spent working on the ranch, planting alfalfa for hay, several short fishing trips, tending to their small vegetable garden, and then planting rye grass for the winter. By September they had replaced the entire perimeter fencing for the ranch and some of the cross fencing, using up the rest of the used fencing materials they had acquired the year before;

CHAPTER ELEVEN

(September 1985)

When hunting season came again they were greatly pleased. The hay had been mowed, baled, and stacked in the barn. And a good deal of their vegetables had been picked, canned or frozen. Up in the mountains they came alive again. The hard summer was over, and the crisp cool air was like a balm to their souls. They took long walks in the woods, took turns cooking meals in their camper, and bathed in a freezing cold stream. It was life-giving to them. It was where they were most alive.

They were up there five days before they actually began hunting. Another two days and Ennis got their first elk. He was good sized and they were pleased with the large amount of meat it produced. The next morning they were out Jack got his elk. It was huge! Half again larger than the first one.

"Look at the size a that thing!" Jack bragged.

"Yep; you did good all right, Bud." Ennis pounded him on the back. "Don't think I've ever seen a rack that big."

"I can't wait to hear what Hennessey says about it." Jack said proudly as they began the tiresome chore of quartering the carcass.

Both of them pleased as punch, they headed for Gillette and Hennessey's Butcher Shop.

"Holy mackerel!" Hennessey howled when he saw their take. "Would you take a look at that!" He called his brother over from next door to have a look at the two heads and skins.

"That's got a be some kind a record!" Paddy Hennessey roared in his thick Irish brogue. "Wait'll I get my camera!" He ran back to his shop and returned minutes later with his Polaroid and took several shots. He wanted one with Jack but Jack refused.

Jack wasn't fond of having his picture taken; and as proud as he was of his first elk, he didn't like that the event seemed to be over-shadowing Ennis and the one he got.

They made their arrangements for the meat and headed on home. They stopped at the house to share the good news; showing the folks one of the photos they were given, and to pick up messages.

"That's a hell of a big elk." The old man snorted. "Who shot it?"

"I did Dad." Jack said proudly.

"Yeah – right." The old man scoffed, dropped the photo on the kitchen table, and left the room.

"In a couple a days our freezers will be full again." Ennis said and the ladies joined in complimenting Jack and Ennis both.

Six messages had come in while they were gone and they got back to business the next day after a long hot bath and a good night's sleep in their own bed. The folks were stunned, as they themselves were, with the many boxes of meat they returned home with a few days later. More than enough to fill their meat freezers.

"I don't see any fish." The old man said as he rummaged through box after box of packaged meat. "We're about out a fish. When you goin fishin again?"

"Soon as we get some time, Dad." Jack assured him. "We need to get caught up on our Handy Man jobs. It won't be long before they dry up for the winter."

"Well, I won't consider we got enough meat for winter until we got plenty a fish." The old man said.

Two weeks later they had a few days off and took off fishing. They came back with both ice chests full; one they sold to Hennessey, the other they shared with the folks. As the ladies were happily wrapping them for the freezer the old man came in.

"It's about time." The old man groused. "Now you best get after the firewood again. That little bitty stack outside won't last long once the weather turns."

In between jobs they did some work on the barn; ignoring the old man's comments, instructions, and criticisms and threats. They simply went about their work and fixed up the barn as good as they could because this winter they fully intended to bring whatever cows they had in for shelter. No matter what the old man had to say about it.

A second hunting trip – this time for deer as Hennessey was short on venison. They got two big bucks and were settling up with Hennessey when Paddy came in from next door along with a tall well-dressed man, fifty-ish, and introduced them.

David Matthews was a businessman from southern California and the one who bought the huge mounted elk head that Jack had shot. He was trilled to meet them and wanted to talk with them about guiding him and a few friends on a hunt.

"We ain't never done any guidin." Ennis said.

"Maybe not, but after hearin what the two of you did on that bear hunt – you're the kind of men we'd be willing to pay good money to guide us." Mathews said.

"What kind a money we talkin here?" Jack asked and got a look from Ennis who was anxious to get loose and head on home.

"Fifteen- hundred." David said.

Jack's mouth dropped open.

Ennis' breath caught as he stared at the guy. "No." He said. "No offense, Mathews, but herdin a bunch a guys up in the mountains, probably never been huntin before and just wanna go out and kill somethin, ain't somethin we're interested in."

Matthews smiled at him goodnaturedly. "We've been huntin together for close to thirty years now and we aren't the kind of hunters you're talking about. We eat what we kill; we share it among our families. We're not just out hunting for trophies."

"What about drinkin?" Ennis asked. "You like to go off on these trips to get drunk?"

"No." Matthews said. "I'm not going to lie to you and say we don't drink because all of us do; but not while we're hunting. That's been one of our agreements since the first time we ever hunted together. No alcohol allowed. Alcohol and guns do not mix well."

"Fifteen-hundred dollars!" Jack said looking to Ennis.

"Jack, we ain't never done no guidin before." Ennis reasoned.

"What happens if we come back empty handed?" Jack asked. "Do we still get paid?"

"A... about the money." Matthews said. "I think there's a slight misunderstanding here."

"I figured there might be." Ennis said and gave Jack an 'I told you so' look.

"What?" Jack asked. "We don't get the fifteen-hundred if you don't get an elk?"

"No, no. That's not it at all." Matthews said. "We pay you fifteen-hundred whether we get anything or not. Each of us."

"Huh?" Ennis asked, not quite understanding.

"There are six of us that usually hunt together, but two won't be available for this trip. So there will be four of us. And each of us will pay you fifteen-hundred to guide us. We're talking six-thousand dollars here for one trip. Guaranteed."

Jack and Ennis were both struck silent.

Ennis got his voice back first and asked, "What exactly would we be expected to do for that kind a money?"

"Basically just let us follow you. We've got our own transportation, our own horses, firearms, and supplies. We cook for ourselves and have all our own equipment. And as I said earlier, we've been hunting for years and can handle ourselves. What we can't seem to do is find the game – or a guide who is any better at it than we are."

"When and where would you be wantin to make this trip?" Ennis asked still expecting this offer to dissolve in some way.

"We were hoping for next week; and as to where – that would be strictly up to you." Matthews said.

"You ever hunted in the Bighorns before?" Ennis asked.

"No, we haven't." Matthews said. "We usually hunt in Yellowstone, but after last years bear scare, we're not anxious to go there again this year. If that elk you shot is an example of the game up there, I can hardly wait!"

"And these friends a yours – they're fellas; right? We don't go huntin with no women."

"Oh no. No women." Matthews laughed. "Don't get me wrong – we've got nothing against women. Our wives look forward to our hunting trips as much as we do every year because they all take off on a massive shopping spree."

"We'll do it then?" Jack asked Ennis.

"We got a couple a jobs lined up, and we told your dad we'd get after the firewood." Ennis reminded him.

"We wouldn't be ready to go before Monday." Matthews said. "That'd give you the rest of this week to get done whatever you had planned. And as for firewood – six grand will buy you a lot of firewood."

"How long a trip would you be plannin on?" Ennis asked. "We won't be doin no foolin around once we get up there and set up camp. We'd head on out next mornin at first light. Sometimes it takes a couple a days before we spot anythin, sometimes longer."

"We've got the next two weeks free." Matthews said. "We don't set any time limit. You'd be the boss and we'd go where ever you said, and stay as long as you want – within that two week period."

"And if we go up and take somethin in just a couple a days, you'd be willin to come back then?" Ennis asked. "I mean – we won't have to stay up there two whole weeks?"

"No, of course not." Matthews assured him.

"And you and your friends, they all got current huntin licenses and tags?" Ennis asked.

"We do." Matthews said.

Jack waited silently as Ennis mulled the proposition over in his mind. He knew how much the money would mean to them. It had been a tough year, and they had only managed to replace fifteen cows of the fifty that his dad had lost. With winter coming on he knew the Handy Man jobs would be drying up and that meant no money coming in at all. He could barely contain himself the few minutes it took Ennis to decide.

"Okay." Ennis said with an outstretched hand. "You got yourself a couple a guides."

They arranged to meet in the Walmart parking lot in Buffalo Monday at noon. Ennis and Jack arrived a little past eleven thirty surprised to find the others already there. Two pickups with campers with California license plates, each pulling a four-horse trailer, were waiting.

Ennis was busy counting heads while Matthews was introducing everyone. There were six of them – not four.

"I know I told you there would be four of us, but this is what happened." Matthews said. "One of our friends had to be in New York this week on business; so he's out. The second guy, Jimmy there, wasn't going to be able to make it because his wife got called away on some family business and he was going to have his three kids to look after. Mickey there," he said pointing to the youngest guy there at seventeen, "and his two little sisters. At the last minute, the two girls got invited to a cousin's house so that freed up Jimmy and Mickey."

Ennis was looking the boy over. He did look like he could take care of himself, but he was so young that it worried Ennis how the boy would act up in the mountains.

"I know this isn't what you agreed on." Jimmy spoke up. "And if you say the word, Mickey and I'll turn around and head back home, but there's no need to be worried about Mickey. He's been hunting with us, off and on, since he was twelve so he knows the ropes."

"He got a license?" Ennis asked.

"He does." Jimmy answered.

"You know how to follow orders?" Ennis asked the boy.

"Yes sir!" The boy answered. "You two are the guides and whatever you say goes. You won't get any trouble from me."

"All right then." Ennis said looking around at the small group. "If everyone's ready we may as well take off. Where we're gonna camp first night is about a two or three hour drive from here; straight up. It'll be slow goin but we made this drive a hundred times. We know where we're goin, and we know the safest way a gettin up there."

"Here." Matthews handed them a walkie-talkie. "I see you already have some, but this one is already tuned to our frequencies. I figured it would be easier to just give you one of ours than for all of us to re-tune to your settings."

"Cool." Jack said as he took the walkie-talkie.

"Anybody have any problems, just sing out." Ennis said as they loaded up and headed out.

"They seem like a pretty good bunch." Jack said later as Ennis drove towards the Saddlestring turn off.

"Yeah. So far." Ennis said, hoping that they hadn't gotten themselves into something they'd regret.

At Saddlestring they turned west, creeping up the mountain past Cloud Park, going as far as they could before pulling over into a clearing to set up camp.

Ennis was pleased at how quiet everyone was, no radios blaring, no loud talking or laughing. He began to relax a little after securing the horses to some trees and seeing that they had food and water. No campfire was made and everyone seemed happy enough just to be up in the mountains. They each had an early dinner in their campers. Afterwards they all stood around outside talking.

With their map spread out on the hood of their pickup, Jack pointed out the area where they had taken their elk the month before. One of the men asked if that was where they were going when they headed out in the morning.

"No." Ennis answered. "That's where they were last month. They won't still be there. They'll either have moved on west or maybe south." He said pointing at the map. "This here's good grazin area and it's got a little stream right about here. It can be accessed from either the west side or the south. I'm bettin that's where we'll spot 'em."

"Where's the stream?" Matthews asked. "I don't see it on the map."

"That's cause it's too little a stream for them to put on a map, but we know it's there." Jack said.

"That's right." Ennis said. "It ain't big enough for no fishin or much a anythin; but it's fine for the game."

"All right." Matthews said as they were beginning to lose the light. "I think we should turn in. What time do we leave in the morning?"

"Dawn." Ennis said as he and Jack climbed into the back of their camper.

"You think they'll be up and ready to go by dawn?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, I do." Ennis said as he poured them each a cup of coffee. "They all seem more than willin to do whatever we tell 'em."

"Let's hope they're still that way out on the trail." Jack said.

"Yeah, Bud. That's what I'm hoping too." Ennis agreed as they sat in their little dinette sipping coffee.

"So you figure out yet how we're gonna spend that money?" Jack asked with a grin.

"It ain't even in the bank yet and you're already tryin to spend it." Ennis teased.

"We gonna spend the whole thing on cows?" Jack asked.

"Nah." Ennis said. "I'm thinkin maybe we ought to hang on to it for a while. Maybe check to see how much it'd cost to get us some electricity. Your folks'll make enough sellin off the calves we got 'em to pay the taxes come January; but there won't be much extra. We'll probably have to spring for the grass seed for 'em and whatever they'll need for their vegetable garden."

"Oh boy! Electricity!" Jack said eager at the thought. "You think it'll cost that much?"

"I got no idea, Bud." Ennis said. "But it's time we looked into it now that we got us a nice chunk a money."

"I agree." Jack said. "The calves should bring in around forty-five hundred, and the taxes are only two thousand. I'm thinkin they ought to be able to get their own seed."

"Maybe." Ennis agreed. "Remember, us gettin electricity will mean a monthly bill we'll have to come up with; and if next year is anythin like this last year, it'd be real nice to have a little somethin extra in the bank. I was thinkin at the most, we might get 'em another five cow/calf pairs. That would put 'em at twenty."

"That sounds good to me." Jack said. "I guess next we should think about a bull."

"That's right." Ennis agreed with a tired sigh. "How about it; you ready for bed?"

"I never turned you down yet when you asked me that question; have I?" Jack gave him a lecherous grin.

"Now, Jack; there ain't gonna be none a that stuff. Not with all the company we got."

"I know." Jack agreed as he stood up and stretched. "It's good enough just gettin to sleep beside you."

Everyone was ready at dawn eager to mount up and be on their way. They rode silently, slowly for two hours before Ennis help up a hand for them to stop. Happy to dismount, they crowded around while Ennis showed them the tracks he'd spotted. They tied their horses and walked for an hour before the trail was lost and they headed back to camp.

They had lunch and headed our again in a different direction spotting a trail just as Ennis was about to give up and turn everyone back to camp.

"Why are we going back?" Matthews asked. "We still got plenty of daylight left."

"We got about two hours daylight left." Ennis explained. "Just enough time to get back to camp. We go after 'em now, we'll be butcherin in the dark."

"You think they'll still be there in the mornin?" Jimmy asked.

"They'll still be in the area." Ennis assured him. "They're gonna be lookin for shelter for the night here shortly, and come mornin they'll either be at that stream or grazin nearby it."

"All right." Matthews said. "You're the boss."

Back at camp they ate a hearty dinner in their campers and went to bed.

Morning came, and they were eager to be on their way. They tied their horses and headed down towards the small stream. It had been decided by the men that Matthews would get the first shot; Jimmy the second.

Jack spotted the elk about fifteen feet back from the stream in some bushes and nudged Ennis.

Ennis pointed for Matthews and he took the shot. The elk went down. They headed over to inspect the kill, when Jimmy took a wrong step, twisted his ankle and went down. At that moment another huge elk came out of the woods heading straight for him. Mickey reaching to help his dad up; saw the animal charging them and shot. The animal dropped less than ten feet in front of them.

"Jesus!" Matthews found his voice first. "I've never seen anything like that. I never heard of one of 'em charging hunters before."

"Sometimes they get a little befuddled when they hear a shot and they just run." Ennis explained as they all hurried to Jimmy's side to make sure he was okay. "If you're lucky – they run the other way. Sometimes they run right into you."

"Good shot, Mickey!" Jack was clapping him on the back.

"Holy cow!" Mickey said. "Holy cow!"

"Look at the size of that thing!" Someone exclaimed.

"I got one! I finally got one! My first elk!" Mickey was saying as everyone crowded around checking it out and taking photos.

They divided up the meat so that no one was carrying more than a quarter as they loaded up their horses and walked them the three miles back towards camp. A mile out Ennis raised up a hand and everyone stopped.

"What is it?" Jack asked.

"A camp fire." Ennis said as he sniffed the air.

"Someone else up here huntin?" Jack said looking around.

"It's comin from the direction a our camp." Ennis said as the others gathered around.

"Well they're welcome to the campsite now." Matthews said with a genial grin. "We got what we came for. We're more than happy to head on back to civilization."

"I don't like it." Ennis said only loud enough for Jack to hear as they headed on. "You just don't move in on someone else's campsite."

"Let 'em have it." Jack said. "We'll have us some lunch soon as we get there; and then leave. It ain't like we're gonna have to share it with 'em."

"It just ain't done." Ennis said growing more and more uneasy the nearer they got.

"Well, well, well!" One of the four; huge, long-haired, bearded men sitting at the campfire said as they entered the clearing. "Look who's back. You boys have any luck?"

"We did just fine." Mathews said as he eyed the men.

"How about sharin?" Another of the men at the fire asked. "We got beer."

"No thanks." Mathews said as everyone began unloading the meat and stashing it in their vehicles.

"What's a matter?" One of the men asked as he tossed his empty beer can across the clearing. "You don't wanna be friendly?"

"Maybe they ain't the friendly type." One of the men said as he stood and advanced on the group.

"Tell you what. How 'bout we buy your take? I'll give you... two hundred dollars. What'd you take anyway, deer or elk?"

"We ain't interested, Mister." Ennis said as they unsaddled their horses.

"Now there's no need to be like that." The guy said and gave Ennis' shoulder a tug. "C'mon. Have a drink?"

"No thanks." Ennis said and pulled loose from the guy. "We're just gonna load up and head on out."

"How about you, boy?" The guy stumbled over to Mickey and draped an arm around his shoulder. "You look thirsty to me; wanna beer?"

"No sir." Mickey said and shrugged the arm off. "I don't drink."

"Whewee!" One of the bearded men said coming over and taking a closer look at Mickey. "Aint' he a pretty one."

"I was thinkin the same thing, Roy." Another one said. "Boy, why don't you come on over here with us. We'll show you good times you ain't never even dreamed of."

Ennis looked around for Jimmy but he had disappeared into the back of his camper. "Mickey, I'll load your horse." He said.

Mickey was blushing a vivid red as he carried his saddle over to the trailer.

"Aw, c'mon now." The men followed Mickey. "No need to be shy. We wouldn't ask you to do nothin you ain't already been doin for these other fellas."

"We just wanna be friendly." Another of the bearded men said.

"Back off!" Ennis said barely controlling his anger as he advanced on the men.

"We just wanna have a little fun." The biggest of the four men gave a lecherous grin and reached over and put a hand on Mickey's shoulder.

Ennis swung a fist and caught the man under his jaw sending him stumbling backwards and landing him on the ground, out cold. The three remaining bearded men came towards Ennis and stopped when a shot was fired into the ground in front of them.

"BACK OFF!" Jack said as he came out from beside their trailer. Everyone came running at the sound of the shot. The three men were facing Ennis who was standing in front of Mickey like a bull dog ready to pounce when everyone froze.

"What's going on here?" Matthews demanded.

"Drag your buddy over there by the fire and sit back down." Jack ordered his rifle balanced comfortably in his hands in front of him. "We'll be out a here in a few minutes and you can get back to your drinkin."

"What happened?" Matthews asked Ennis as the men did as they were told and dragged their buddy off.

"Plans are changed. We're pullin out now." Ennis said and then to the boy asked, "You okay, Mickey?"

"Yes sir." Mickey answered once he found his voice. "Mr. del Mar?" He caught Ennis before he could get back to work.

Ennis stopped and turned back to him.

"Thank you!" Mickey said still trembling in fear a little.

"You're welcome." Ennis said. "Just load up now so we can get on out a here."

They drove nearly an hour before reaching Saddlestring and decided to stop at the campgrounds. It was nice sized and run by a group of Rangers on their off hours. The spaces were large enough to accommodate their rigs, horses were welcome, and there was a little store that had restrooms with hot showers in the back. It took some time but they finally unwound enough to relax and go back over their entire trip as they sat around their evening campfire.

Mickey, having fully recovered from his unfortunate episode with the bearded men, was back to being euphoric over getting his first elk. The men were all extremely pleased with the trip and were already talking to Ennis and Jack about scheduling another hunt for next October.

Ennis and Jack both agreeing that it was impossible to make plans a full year ahead of time, declined.

CHAPTER TWELVE

(October 1985)

The rows between Mr. and Mrs. Twist went on and on. Mr. Twist screaming that he had had enough and he wanted everyone off his property. He was tired of being ignored, tired of his wife not obeying his wishes, tired of having two extra mouth to feed; and most of all tired of Jack and Ennis who had somehow managed to make their part of the ranch continue to improve in just a short time when he hadn't been able to do anything but barely survive for the forty five years he'd been in charge. He wanted them gone – all of them. And was determined that he would make his wife understand and stand by him. She didn't.

Mrs. Twist stood up for herself, her son, Ennis, and the twins. Nothing her husband said mattered to her any more, she did nothing he told her to do, and refused to back him in any arguments with the others.

It was all out war. Anything either of them did would set the other one off.

On and on the old man complained. They weren't restoring his herd fast enough, he didn't like the quality of the cows he was getting, even though they were a much more expensive quality than he had lost. He wanted more fish, more firewood. Nothing they did for him satisfied him.

Jack and Ennis arrived home from work and brought in some mail that had accidentally been put in their box and found the two of them going at it as the twins stood by wringing their hands; wanting to help but not knowing what to do.

"What's going on?" Jack asked as he dropped the mail on the table everyone was standing around. Apples were scattered, some in a bowl cut up for a pie, others on the table, some on the floor.

"Ask him!" Mrs. Twist yelled through her tears. "Ask that son of a bitch!" She pointed a shaking hand at her husband.

"This ain't none a your business!" The old man shouted at Jack and Ennis. "Get the hell out a here!"

"He had insurance." Lily whispered to Jack standing next to her.

"What?" Jack asked, puzzled. "What has insurance got to do with anythin?"

"The herd!" Mrs. Twist managed to get out between sobs. "He had the herd insured!"

"You mean he got insurance on the cows we got for him?" Ennis asked trying to understand what was going on.

"NO!" She yelled. "The herd he lost because he was too stubborn to bring them in from the storm!"

"He had _insurance _on the herd – the herd he lost – and we've been breakin our backs to replace?" Jack's anger was beginning to build up inside him.

"YES!" She fairly screamed. "And he didn't tell no one! He put it in a secret bank account."

"You had insurance?" Jack demanded of his dad.

"What's it to you. It ain't none a your business. I didn't ask you to replace the herd. He offered to!" He screamed, pointing at Ennis.

"Isn't that fraud or something?" Lyla asked.

"Couldn't he be arrested for that?" Lily asked.

"I don't know." Ennis said as Jack seemed to have lost his voice for the moment. "But it sure could get him a good ass-kickin!"

"And that's exactly what he needs!" Jack said and headed for his dad.

The old man backed up against the table.

"No, Jackie, don't!" Mrs. Twist grabbed his arm to stop him. "I tried to call the sheriff, but he pulled the phone out of the wall before I was able to tell 'em what he did."

A car pulled up into the drive just then but none in the kitchen heard it.

"I think callin the sheriff is a good idea." Jack said and bent down to plug the phone back in.

The old man's eyes darting around the room, landed on the knife on the table next to him. He picked it up and lunged at Jack who was crouching down to plug the phone in. "**This is all your fault! Why'd you have to come back!" **He shrieked.

Ennis dived across the table knocking it sideways and the old man across the room, wrestling the knife away from him.

"**What the hell's goin on in here?" **Sheriff Bradley's voice boomed into the room as he and his deputy entered.

Ennis and Jack both got to their feet; Ennis jerking the old man up by his overalls.

Mrs. Twist turned her tear stained face to Sheriff Bradley and explained everything to him.

"Don't none a you leave this room." The sheriff said. "You come with me." He reached for Mr. Twist who seemed in a state of shock and walked along with them easily as they headed out the door.

A few minutes later the sheriff came back in. "Sit down everyone." He said kindly. "We need to do some serious talkin here Bertie. It's time to do somethin about this."

Ennis shoved the table back where it belonged, up-righted the over-turned chair and sat down with everyone else.

"I had Donald work up divorce papers for me some time back." Mrs. Twist said. "I'll file them first thing tomorrow mornin."

"You gotta do more than that, Bertie." The sheriff said. "You gotta explain to Donald exactly what happened and insist that he put those papers through immediately."

"Is he going to jail?" Lyla asked.

"Are you going to arrest him? He tried to stab Jack with that knife!" Lily said.

"Yes, I know. I saw what happened." Sheriff Bradley said. "You gotta see Donald first thing in the morning, Bertie; and make sure you tell him everything. I'll tell you why. We, here in this room, all know that he's gone mental. He's been headin in that direction for a long time and today proves it.

What you may _not_ know, is that it is against the law here in Wyomin to divorce a person who's mentally ill."

"You mean she can't get a divorce?" Jack asked.

"I mean – and this don't go no farther than this room – she needs to file immediately and get it into court before he gets declared mentally unstable by a doctor. There was this woman over near Spotted Horse. Her husband beat the dickens out a her all the time. She waited and waited to divorce him, until it was too late."

"She couldn't get a divorce?" Jack asked.

"No. She was granted a legal separation from him, but he'd been arrested and looked at by some doctors who declared him a mental case. Not only was she unable to divorce him, he got sent to some mental hospital, and she ended up havin to pay all his bills. She lost everythin she had includin her house and ended up havin to move in with relatives down in Cheyenne. You do NOT want this to happen to you!"

"They could take the ranch?" Mrs. Twist gasped.

"Now, we're not gonna let that happen, Bertie." Sheriff Bradley patted her arm. "I got a legal right to hold him for seventy-two hours and I'm gonna do that without him seein no doctors. In the mean time, you get those papers filed, and make sure Donald knows to get those paper filed soon as you sign 'em."

"How long will it take to get her case to court?" Jack asked. "Can you hold him that long?"

"I'll keep him calm and hold him as long as I can before filin charges against him. But if he starts actin nutty down at the station, they're gonna wanna call in a doctor to have a look at him." Sheriff Bradley said. "Bertie, that's why you gotta impress on Donald the importance a getting those papers filed immediately. If we're lucky, he might even know a judge that can put a rush on things. Are those papers you got dated?"

"No." Mrs. Twist said. "I was waitin until I was ready to file to date 'em."

"Good. Then ask Donald if you can date 'em back to the day he had them made up for you. That will prove that you had this divorce in motion long before today's incident."

"All right." She said. "I'll be in his office first thing tomorrow mornin."

"I gotta go now." The sheriff said. "But I'm takin the long way home; maybe makin a couple a stops along the way. The seventy-two hour thing don't start until I get him down to the station and get my report written up and officially arrest him. And I can take a long time writin up that report." He gave them all a nod and left.

"Momma, are you all right?" Jack went over to her and hugged her.

"I'm fine." She said. "This is somethin I should a done a long time ago; I know that now. I should never a let it get this far. I was tryin to be kind, and he almost killed you Jackie. If it hadn't been for Ennis..." She reached out a hand for Ennis and he came over and hugged her as well. "You saved Jackie's life. I won't never forget that. Not as long as I live will I ever forget that I owe you Jackie's life."

Ennis couldn't speak a word so he hugged her again.

"If you're sure you're all right..." Jack said.

"Positive." She said.

"We'll look after her." Lily and Lyla came over and put their arms around her.

"You got the walkie-talkie. Call me if you need me." Jack said and he and Ennis left.

They drove the short distance in silence neither saying a word until they were in their cabin and Ennis was lighting a fire while Jack lit the many candles on the mantle.

"You all right?" Ennis asked softly as Jack stood staring into the fire.

"He tried to kill me." Jack whispered. "My own father tried to kill me."

"He was scared half out a his mind, Bud." Ennis said, rubbing the back of Jack's neck. "He'd a never tried nothin like that otherwise."

"And the insurance thing?" Jack asked.

"Well, that was just plain meanness." Ennis said. "And he was right. He never did ask us to replace his herd. We did that on our own cause we both wanted to help him, and he took advantage of us."

"I hope the bastard rots in jail!" Jack said.

"He'll most likely end up in a mental hospital somewhere." Ennis said. "I just hope the sheriff can hold him long enough for your momma to get her divorce filed."

"I won't let 'em take the ranch, Ennis. We worked too hard on it."

"It ain't gonna come to that." Ennis assured him. "This lawyer fella and the sheriff are gonna see to it that your momma gets her divorce."

"I should a insisted that she file years ago. Hell, everyone knows him, knows he's nutty." Jack said.

"It wasn't your call to make, Bud. It was hers. And besides, lots a people are nutty and they manage to live out their lives without botherin too many people." Ennis said. "You did the right thing. You backed your momma up when she made her choices. That's all you can and should do. You can't make her decisions for her."

"I know, I know." Jack said. "The insurance thing – now that doesn't surprise me at all. Him having a secret bank account – that don't surprise me neither. That's exactly the sort a thing I'd expect from him. It's... the other thing... he actually tried to kill me!"

"That was where he slipped over the edge." Ennis said. "He figured he was losin the ranch and he blamed it all on you comin back here to live. He was too far gone by then to realize that everything fell apart because a his own misdeeds."

"You think there will be a trial?" Jack asked.

"I don't think so; not if he gets declared mentally ill." Ennis said. "My guess is, they'll keep him calm and friendly like until they know the divorce has been filed. Then they'll see about makin everythin official. When he hears the charges against him, attempted murder, he'll probably flip out again. That's when they'll have to get a doctor in to see him."

"And what if he don't get declared a mental case?" Jack asked.

"Then, most likely, there will be a trial. The sheriff saw what happened. He said so. It won't be much of a trial, and if he ain't declared mental, he'll go to jail." Ennis reasoned.

"Jesus!" Jack said covering her face with both hands. "I never figured it'd come to this."

"There's no way a ever knowin what a crazy person will do, Jack. It's all out a our hands now. We just got a get to workin this ranch the way it's supposed to be worked."

"Everythin changes now." Jack said. "Our plans, everythin."

"Well maybe not everythin." Ennis grinned at him and pulled him over to the couch to sit with him.

"We got a little money comin in with our Handy Man jobs. And September we can start huntin again. Maybe we'll even give Matthews a call and take him and his friends huntin again. We'll work it all out. We just got a include the rest a the ranch in our plans. "

They sat quietly for a few moments before Jack spoke, "Ennis... I need you to make love to me. Can you do that? Right now?"

"Jack... you're kind a in shock." Ennis stuttered. Never in a million years did he ever think he'd have a reason to turn Jack down.

"Maybe I am." Jack said as he leaned over against Ennis' shoulder. "But I need you right now. Everythin... the whole world is just all spinnin around out there, and I feel like you're the only thing that's... solid right now."

"I'm here for you, Bud. Whatever you need."

"Take me to bed then and fuck me like you've never fucked me before." He pleaded clutching Ennis' arm.

"If you're sure that's what you really want right now?" Ennis asked.

"It's what I_ need_, Cowboy. Please!"

He didn't need to ask a second time. Ennis took him by the hand and led him into the bedroom and did as he was asked.

Two hours later Ennis was in the kitchen working up a late dinner for them. Jack came up behind him, circling him with his arms and resting his head on Ennis' shoulder.

"You all right?" Ennis asked.

"Uh huh. Hungry." Jack said.

"Good. This hash ought to hit the spot then." Ennis said.

"Smells good." Jack said as he got two plates down and poured two cups of coffee.

Ennis filled the two plates and joined Jack at the table.

"I need to go see Momma. See that she's okay." Jack said after emptying his plate and lighting up an after dinner cigarette.

"It's after nine, Bud." Ennis said. "You think she's still up?"

"Yeah, I do. I figured we could just drive up there, see if the lights are on." Jack said. "If they are, we can go in and see to her. If they ain't, we can turn around and come back."

"All right." Ennis said. "Let's do it."

"Are you all right, Momma?" Jack asked as they came in and found Mrs. Twist and the twins at the kitchen table.

"I'm fine; Son, really. I wish everyone would stop worryin about me." She said. "Can I get you some cocoa? We were just talkin about things over some cocoa. It goes so good on a chilly evenin."

"No thanks, Momma. We just had dinner." Jack said but they took seats at the table. "We just came by to make sure everyone was all right, and to tell you, you got nothin to worry about. Ennis and me can run the ranch, and take care a the bills."

"Could I ask a question?" Ennis asked.

"Why sure you can, Ennis." Mrs. Twist said. "You can ask us anythin at all."

"I was wonderin... how did you find out about the insurance thing?"

"Oh that." She shook her head, thinking back to earlier in the day. "I need to explain it from the beginnin. Years ago when my daddy was still alive, he had this wooden box with a lock on it. It's where he kept all his important papers, and some cash money. He always kept it locked. When he passed, John took charge a that box. That's where he was keepin that fake will and deed.

"When I told Donald, the lawyer, about what happened when John tried to throw you two off the ranch, he wanted to see the papers. Now what John _didn't _know was that I had a key to that box too. I knew that's where he'd be keepin those papers, so I waited until he had gone into town one day, went to the box and got them out. Next day I took them in to Donald. He got new papers made up, puttin everythin back the way it was supposed to be, and I put 'em back in the box.

"I didn't think nothin more of it for some time, and I got to wonderin the last couple a days if they were still there; or if he had found them and changed them back again. This morning he went into town again, and I got that box out and went back in to check. The paperwork was all the corrected ones, so I started to close the box up and somethin made me look around at a few of the envelopes that were in there. First thing I found was a bank statement for a bank in Sheridan. Now we've never done our bankin in Sheridan. It's always been Gillette. When I opened it up, I saw there was a balance of over seventeen thousand dollars in it. The account was in the name of the Twist Ranch, and there was a phone number, so I called and asked them about the deposit. The girl I talked to said it come from some insurance company. So I called the insurance company and they told me it was for the loss of the herd.

"Quite frankly, I was flabbergasted. I mean, nobody knows better than I do what a pain in the ass John is, but I never figured him to pull somethin like that. I still don't know what he was plannin on doin with that money. He obviously had no intentions of usin it to replace the herd."

"He seemed real sure that Jack was here to take over the ranch." Ennis said. "Maybe he figured he'd be put off the place and he was savin that money just in case that happened."

"I'll bet that's it!" Jack said.

"That's probably it." Mrs. Twist said with a sigh.

"You were really smart to figure everythin out like that, Momma. I'm proud a you."

"Thank you, honey." She said. "I just wish things hadn't gotten so far out a hand. I guess I didn't handle it very well, but when he came home this afternoon and I asked him about it; he just exploded."

"It's all over now, Momma." Jack said. "He'll either be goin to jail, or to a mental hospital."

"I suppose it's where he belongs." She said. "Either one or the other."

"Either way, he won't be comin back here." Jack said. "I hope that gives you as much relief as it does me."

"It does, Son. It does." She said. "And isn't that just the saddest thing ever?"

"All right then." Jack said standing up. "You ladies enjoy your cocoa; we're gonna call it a night. And you need to be at that lawyer's office first thing in the mornin, Momma."

"Oh, I will be." She said. "I can promise you that."

The next day they were working on a paint job and stopped for lunch. Jack called his momma to find out what the lawyer had to say. He came back to the truck with a grin on is face.

"You talk to her?" Ennis asked as Jack climbed into the truck beside him. "Everythin go all right?"

"Yep." Jack said. "Just the way we hoped it would. The lawyer says that I need to get over to Sheridan and close out that account. Transfer it all over to the ranch account in Gillette."

"Can you do that?" Ennis asked.

"I guess you ain't never seen my driver's license." Jack grinned and pulled it out of his wallet. "My born name was John Charles Twist. Same as Dad's, and they never added the 'Junior' thing. Seems Dad didn't want his son called Junior."

"And there won't be no trouble movin the money?" Ennis asked.

"Shouldn't be. Accordin to the bank papers, Dad put the account in the ranch name, with himself as the only one who could draw on it. J.C. Twist." Jack explained. "The lawyer said all I need to do is take the papers in, show my I.D. and sign just like Dad did – J.C. Twist. That's my legal name, and I'm just transferring the money from one Twist ranch account over into another and there ain't nothin illegal about that. He says it's best to do it immediately cause if Dad gets the idea he needs a lawyer, he might try to draw on it. We gotta make sure he don't get that chance. I just wish I could do it all by phone, but the lawyer said it was best to go in and do it. He says that we need to then go to our bank in Gillette and change my name on it to Jackie. That way he can't draw on that account neither."

"You should probably get a new driver's license too. This is a Texas license." Ennis said as he handed the card back.

"Yeah." Jack agreed. "I'll do that as soon as I get the money transferred."

"Has she heard from Sheriff Bradley?" Ennis asked.

"Uh huh." He says he told Dad he was being held for Domestic Disturbance right now until it was determined if any further charges would be filed against him. That should keep him calm enough so we can get all our paperwork in order."

"And the divorce?" Ennis asked.

"She said the lawyer had received a long detailed phone call from Sheriff Bradley explainin things and he agreed to back-date the paperwork to the day he had the papers made up. As soon as Momma signed them, he got up and took the papers over to the courthouse himself and filed them. He knows the judge pretty well that handled that other case where that woman lost everything, and he put a call into him. He's going to try and get him to hear Momma's case as soon as possible. He said he'd call her as soon as he got a court date."

"It all sounds pretty good, Bud." Ennis said as he started the truck and headed back to work. "We just gotta make sure everythin we do is proper and legal. We don't want any mistakes that some lawyer could come back in a couple a years and cancel everythin out."

"I agree. We're gonna make sure it's all done right." Jack said, happy that things seemed to be going in the right direction.

Eight days after Mr. Twist was officially arrested, Mrs. Twist got her divorce. It took less than five minutes. The judge asked her very few questions, and it was over. Forty-five years of marriage finished in a snap.

Jack took care of his banking arrangements, got a new driver's license, and the charges against Mr. Twist were upped to attempted murder. Just as expected, he flipped out. He'd been sullen and relatively un-cooperative from the beginning, but had managed to keep it together thinking he would be going home in a few days. The new charges caught him by surprise tipping him over completely. He started screaming; first of all, that it never happened – that Jack was lying about it, making it all up; then he resorted to blaming Jack, saying it was self defense. When the sheriff reminded him that he had been there and had seen the entire episode; that was the last straw. He was cornered and he knew it. He was left alone in his cell to scream and rant all he pleased. After a time he withdrew completely. It was only after he'd refused to eat or drink for the second day that they finally called in a doctor. Within a week he'd been transferred to the mental health facility in Cheyenne for observation; where he would eventually be committed and remain for the rest of his life.

Farmer's Market Day came and went and their freezers were once again full to the brim with fruits and vegetables.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

(November 1985)

With the money they made from their guided hunting trip, they had enough to get electricity run out to the cabin with Frank Elliot doing most of the work. They decided on small electric heaters for the time being as the larger heaters were too expensive and would have to wait until they could afford them.

They retired their antique washing machine and in its place, hooked up the automatic washing machine, dryer and hot water heater that they had been saving from the Mills house. With everything they had stored now out of the barn, they were able to create two new large stalls for the horses and still have plenty enough room for their tractors.

Thanksgiving day they'd just finished dinner and were still sitting at the table; too full to move.

"Momma, we got somethin we'd like to talk with you about." Jack said.

"What is it Jackie; Ennis; another cup a coffee first?" Mrs. Twist asked.

"No, thanks, Momma." Jack said and Ennis nodded negatively as well.

"Now honey; if it's about the ranch – the two a you just go ahead and do whatever you think it needs. It's your place now." Mrs. Twist said.

"It ain't about the ranch, Momma." Jack grinned. "It's about someone... someone special who's havin a birthday next week."

"Oh goodness!" Mrs. Twist blushed. "I'd just as soon forget it this year."

"Oh no you can't!" Lyla said.

"You can't!" Lily echoed her sister. "We gotta go into Gillette and get you signed up for Social Security!"

"Oh, I do wanna do that; but that's all." She smiled sweetly.

"I know you're not used to havin anyone fuss over you, Momma," Jack said, "and last year we honored your wishes. But this year is different. It's special, and we wanna do something special for you. Is there anything particular that you want?"

"Oh no!" She said. "I have everythin I could possibly want sittin right here at this table with me."

"We figured you'd say somethin like that so me and Ennis come up with an idea a our own." Jack said and gave Ennis a nudge.

"Ah, if you want... we thought it might be nice to paint your bedroom for you." Ennis said.

"Oh, that would be lovely!" She said. "But you shouldn't be spendin your hard earned money on me. Isn't there somethin the two a you need that you could be spendin that money on?"

"Momma, that ain't the point." Jack said. "We wanna make your room like brand new. Like you used to have it when you were growin up. Didn't you say it used to be green?"

"That's right. A beautiful pale sage green." She said with a dreamy look on her face as she remembered her childhood days growing up in that room.

"Well, we're gonna paint it that color again for you." Jack said proudly.

"And that ain't all, Momma." Jack started and got a poke in the ribs from Ennis.

"I thought the rest a it was gonna be a surprise." He hissed at Jack.

"What?" Lyla asked, wide eyed with excitement.

"What?" Lily echoed her sister.

Mrs. Twist just sat there staring at Jack, then Ennis, then back at Jack again.

"We gotta tell 'em now." Jack grinned. "We got all three a 'em excited."

"Go ahead." Ennis grinned, enjoying the moment as much as Jack was.

"We probably need to do it anyway so we can have it all ready on her birthday." Jack reasoned.

Ennis just shrugged. He knew Jack couldn't keep it a secret; not from his momma.

"Well, we saw how excited you were about fixin up the twins room, and how happy it made you and them when they saw it; we wanna give you the same thing. A freshly painted bedroom, and a new bedroom set."

"Oh no, Jackie! They're way too expensive!" Mrs. Twist protested.

"Momma, that old set a yours you had since you first got married. It's time you got rid a it."

"How about one from one a the antique stores?" Ennis suggested. "Most of 'em come with wardrobes, and she's gonna need one. I don't think those newer bedroom sets don't have wardrobes."

"Oh that's a wonderful idea!" Lily squealed.

"They have so many beautiful sets, Bertie!" Lyla agreed with her sister.

"And, we could probably just work it off." Jack said. "It wouldn't cost us nothin but a little work."

"Oh... I... I don't know what to say." She dabbed at her eyes with her apron. "You are all so good to me."

"Oh say yes, Bertie!" Lily said.

"Think of the fun we'll have shoppin for it. And we been wonderin what to get you too." Lyla said.

"Now we know." Lily added. "We'll get you new sheets and pillows, and coverlet! Your whole room will be like new; just like ours!"

"I think it's all settled then." Jack smiled as he squeezed his momma's hand.

"We've made some plans ourselves we want to talk with you about; if you have some time?" Mrs. Twist asked.

"Sure, Momma." Jack said.

"The girls have something they want to say." She nodded for them to speak up.

"Are we, or are we not, a part of this family?" Lily asked.

"Well, sure you are!" Jack assured her.

"Then we want to pay our share!" Lyla said.

"The three of us talked it over and now that Bertie will be getting her Social Security checks, we want to pay a fair share of the household bills – electric, phone, and groceries." Lily said.

"We can handle all the household bills, if you two can just take care a runnin the ranch – we'll have everythin covered." Mrs. Twist added.

"Are you sure, Momma?" Jack asked. "The electricity is gonna be a lot more now that we're hooked up."

"Positive!" She said. "We've got it all figured out. My check is supposed to be the same as the girls so that'll give us a total income of six-hundred, seventy-five dollars a month. With plenty enough left over for a few extra things that we have in mind."

"Extra things?" Jack asked.

"Chickens!" Lyla blurted out. "We wanna raise chickens!"

"Chickens?" Jack asked looking from one twin to the other.

"Yes, chickens." Lily confirmed. "When we were kids, we used to raise chickens and sell the eggs. We already talked with the nice young man who runs that small grocery store in Lightnin Flat, and he said he'd be willin to buy some from us."

"We were thinkin that maybe when you had some time, you could fix us up a chicken coop." Mrs. Twist said. "We'd pay for all the supplies, buy the chickens and feed, and everythin we'd need; if you could just come up with a coop for us."

Jack looked at Ennis who was grinning. "I guess we could knock somethin together; couldn't we?"

"Sure thing." Ennis said. "Just let us know where you want it; and about how many chickens you're plannin on keepin and we can fix you up somethin real nice."

"Well, we're talkin spring, a course." Mrs. Twist said. "And before that, we need to talk Christmas."

"Oh yes!" Lily exclaimed. "Let's talk about Christmas!"

"We wanna big Christmas!" Lyla said.

"We've been talkin about the holidays." Mrs. Twist explained. "And we decided we'd like to make this year special, have a big tree and presents and all." She looked from Jack to Ennis and back to Jack again. "What do you two think?"

"I think it's a great idea!" Jack said.

"We got lots a trees out back that'd work." Ennis said.

"We want a big one!" Lily said.

"We got all sizes out there." Ennis assured her, grinning at her enthusiasm.

"Well, you ladies get to plannin and let us know when you're ready. We'll bring you in a nice tree whenever you're ready.

"Oh, this is going to be so much fun!" Mrs. Twist clapped her hands together.

A few days later they were in town after finishing up a delivery for Poppy when they ran into Mrs. Twist and the twins at the antique store, shopping for Christmas decorations. While they waited for Poppy to make out their check, they wandered around the store.

"Look at this." Jack said going over an old Victrola. "I'll bet Momma would love this!"

"She sure does." Poppy said as she walked up to them. "The three of them were looking at it just before you came in."

"These here records go with it, or do they cost extra?" Ennis asked going through a box of old phonograph records sitting next to the Victrola.

"They're included in the price." Poppy said.

"You thinkin what I'm thinkin?" Jack asked with a grin.

"I'm thinkin this would make a great Christmas gift for your Momma; and it's somethin the twins would get a lot a enjoyment out of too." Ennis said.

"If you're needin a gift for the twins, I got just the thing in the other room." Poppy said and headed off.

Jack and Ennis grinned at each other and followed her.

"The three of them were looking at this treadle sewing machine." Poppy said. "The twins were sayin they used to have one just like it and used to sew all their clothes on it. They were sayin that neither of them liked the electric machines and wouldn't use one. I'll bet they'd just love to find this with their name on it Christmas morning."

"It works?" Jack asked.

"Absolutely!" Poppy said. "I tried it out. It works all right."

"What do you think?" Jack asked Ennis.

"I think we just got a good start on our Christmas shopping." Ennis grinned.

"I'll be happy to hold them here for you until just before Christmas if you want." Poppy offered.

"Thanks." Jack said. "Keep this check as the down payment; we'll pay it off next week. We got a paint job that should cover the balance."

"Maybe we could find somethin here for the kids, Jack." Ennis suggested. "I usually just send the girls a little money and let them buy their own gifts; but this place has a lot a nice stuff in it."

"Yeah." Jack agreed. "Let's look around a little more before we leave."

"Ennis came to a full stop in the glass-ware aisle. "Help me pick somethin out, Jack. What do you think Junior would like?"

"Jeez, I don't know." Jack said scanning all the different items gleaming on the shelves. "Maybe a set a glasses?"

"What about this?" Ennis said stopping in front of a pitcher and cups called a chocolate set. "I know she likes hot chocolate."

"That's real nice." Jack said. "I'll bet Momma and the twins would love it. If you don't get it for Junior, I think I'll get it for them."

"There's another set; why don't we get both of 'em. One for Junior and one for your momma." Ennis suggested.

"Did you find somethin else?" Poppy asked as she joined them.

"Uh huh." Ennis said. "You got boxes for these chocolate sets? I got a mail one set up to Alaska."

"Oh absolutely." Poppy said. "I can double box it for you. I'll put it in a pretty gift box, wrap it; and then in a stronger box for mailing."

"Oh that would be great." Ennis said.

"We want both a these sets." Jack said. "We're gonna give one set to Momma."

"I'm sure she'll love it." Poppy said as she gathered the sets up and headed back to the counter.

Jack and Ennis gathered up some as well and carried it up front. "You got any idea what a nineteen year old girl might like?" Ennis asked her.

"Hmmm" Poppy thought. "What about a music box? Or some antique jewelry?"

"Don't know about jewelry; where's the music boxes?" Ennis asked.

"Right over there, just past the dolls." Poppy said as she busied herself writing up the sale.

Jack and Ennis took a look and came back with one that they picked out for Jenny. Now all they had to worry about was something for Bobby. That problem was solved when Jack spotted some first-edition books in a cabinet. He picked out a copy of "Call of The Wild" by Jack London. They had Poppy gift-wrap the items for them.

Their shopping for the kids finished, they left. Full of the Christmas spirit now, they spotted a few other items that they picked up for the ladies.

Soon the tree was up and covered with beautiful antique decorations, plus a few modern ones that the ladies had bought. All three ladies being barely over five-foot tall, left the top part of the tree to be decorated by Jack and Ennis. Every day more and more packages appeared under the tree.

Two days before Christmas Jack and Ennis made the trip into town to pick up the Victrola and sewing machine. Poppy had somehow managed to gift-wrap them, with much difficulty, they were sure. They covered them with a tarp and headed on home; leaving them in the barn for the time being.

They stopped in at the house as they usually did after being gone for a time, and found six large boxes sitting in the dining room.

"What's this stuff?" Jack asked.

"You don't know?" Mrs. Twist asked, surprised. "It come for the two a you today. I figured you knew what it was."

"Nope." Jack said as he looked the items over.

"It's from California." Ennis said as he looked at the post mark on one of the boxes.

"What do you suppose it is?" Jack asked. "I didn't order nothin. Did you?"

"Huh uh." Ennis said. "Here." He had found an envelope attached to the smallest box, pulled it off and handed it to Jack. "Maybe this will tell us."

"It's from Matthews!" Jack's grin spread wide. "He says Happy Holidays from the gang."

"Jeez!" Ennis said taking the note and reading it.

"Can we open 'em now; or do we have to wait?" Jack asked, anxious as a kid.

"It's just two more days." Ennis said. "We probably should wait."

They looked at each other for a moment then both said, "Nah!"

The three ladies gathered around, just as excited as Jack was.

"Oh yes; open them!" Lily said.

"They're heavy!" Mrs. Twist said. "The delivery man brought them in for us. We were going to put them in the front room by the tree but decided not to once we lifted one."

"Here's some scissors." Lila said handing them to Jack.

The first box they opened was full of oranges and tangerines. The second one; lemons, limes, grapefruit. The third box held a variety of wines. The fourth one jams, jellies, and crackers. The fifth box had an assortment of cheeses, sausages, candy and nuts.

"Oh my goodness!" Mrs. Twist and the ladies marveled at each box. "All a that must a cost a fortune!"

"Maybe not." Jack said holding up a jar of jam. "Look at the label. 'Matthews Fruit Farms'. He must own the company."

"Well I'll be." Ennis said as he took a closer look.

"Don't forget the small box." Mrs. Twist said handing it to them to open.

Ennis opened it and found a leather bound photo album. In gold embossed letters across the front it said "Big Horns – September l985"

The first few pages were photos of each member of the group with their names printed neatly below. From then on, it was a complete photo journal of their hunting trip with little notes written beside each photo by different members of the group. The last page was a note with a plea for another hunting trip for the next year. All of the group had signed their names.

"Wow!" Jack said completely blown away.

"You said it, Bud." Ennis said as he ran his hand over the leather cover. "I knew they were takin some pictures, but I never dreamed they'd come up with somethin like this."

"Oh this sausage smells so good!" Mrs. said. "Let's have it for dinner." They feasted on their California bounty and enjoyed every single mouthful.

Christmas morning Ennis and Jack slipped their two large gifts in the front door while the ladies were busy in the kitchen fixing breakfast.

After breakfast, the opening of the presents began. The ladies, of course, had to open their big gifts first and were stunned. The Victrola was immediately cranked up and a record put on. The twins cried when they saw their sewing machine.

Everyone loved their gifts; Jack and Ennis got sweaters, socks, gloves, candle holders, and a clock for their mantle. The ladies got flannel night gowns, robes, slippers, the chocolate set, some antique glasses, and a sewing box.

Dinner was turkey with all the trimmings, pumpkin pie, and a long restful nap afterwards. Life was good at the Twist ranch.

New Years Eve they opened a bottle of wine to celebrate. None of them were wine drinkers, but they had it, so they drank it. Lots of it. It was indeed a time to celebrate, and celebrate they did!

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

(New Year's Day – 1986)

New Year's Day they were in the front room listening to the Victrola when a car pulled up. Jack was in the bathroom and didn't hear the knock on the door. The man asked to see Jack, and Mrs. Twist invited him inside.

Jack came back into the room, saw Randall Malone standing there, grabbed him by the arm and escorted him back outside.

"What the hell are you doin here, Randall?" Jack asked once he walked his surprise visitor out to his rental car.

"I needed to see you." Randall said with his most persuasive grin.

"I told you before I left Childress that we were over." Jack said angrily – worried what Ennis might be thinking.

"You're angry – I thought you might be just a little happy to see me." Randal tried again to be casual.

"Randall..." Jack stopped when he saw something in Randall's eyes. "Wait a minute – you didn't come all this way just to get laid. Are you in trouble again?"

"Nothin that can't be fixed with a little help from my friends." Randall smiled like a naughty boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"Well, you come to the wrong place this time." Jack shook his head, wondering how he ever let himself get mixed up with the likes of Randall Malone. "I'm flat broke."

"Oh, I'm sure you could come up with it. I only need fifty." Randall said like it was nothing at all and he fully expected Jack to come up with it.

"Fifty? Fifty grand?" Jack was stunned. "Do I look like I got that kind a money?"

Randall looked around at the shabby house and barn. "You could get it though. All it would take would be a call to Lureen. You know she'd give it to you. I can pay you back soon as I get my check."

"Now why would Lureen see fit to loan me fifty grand? We been divorced two years now." Jack paced nervously wanting to get rid of this person out of his past.

"Divorced?" Randall was obviously shocked. "I hadn't heard that. Why on earth would you divorce her—give up all that money?"

"Randall, I got people inside waitin on me." Jack said. "I got no money to loan you, and I'm not askin Lureen for any. You best go talk to one a your other 'friends'."

"I already tried everyone, Jack. You're my last hope." Randall begged. "Come on; you can get it for me; can't you? For old times sake?"

"No, I can't. I don't have it, and I don't have any way to get that kind a money." Jack said with disgust. "When are you gonna learn to live within your trust fund allowance, Randall?"

"Oh you know how it is." Randall grinned at him. "Things happen."

"Yeah, things happen," Jack said. "You been gamblin again? I thought you quit that."

"I did, but last week I got into this friendly little game..."

"Friendly huh?" Jack said.

"It was... up until the last hand." Randall said. "Look, I wouldn't ask you if I wasn't desperate. I got a come up with that money or I'm in deep shit. You know what they do to those who don't settle their I.O.U.s."

"I guess you're gonna have to ask Lashawn then." Jack suggested.

"I can't!" Randall was becoming more desperate. "She'll divorce me for sure. She thinks I quit."

"You got yourself into this mess, you're gonna have to get yourself out." Jack said.

"Jack, _please!" _Randal said grabbing Jack's arm.

"I can't help you." Jack said pulling free from Randall's grip. "You best be on your way." He reached over and opened the door of Randall's rental car.

"I always knew you were a cold-hearted bastard!" Randall said as he fished in his pocket for his keys. "I figured at least you could do this one little thing for me though."

"Randall..." Jack thought of several things he could have said, but decided not to. "Why don't you try a bank. They might be willin to loan you somethin on your trust fund."

"You don't even care what they'll do to me; do you?" Randall tried for a little sympathy.

"Like I said; it's your mess. You clean it up." Jack said and headed back towards the house, pleased when he heard the car door slam and tires spitting dirt as Randall roared out of the driveway. Now all he had to do was think of a way to explain it all to Ennis.

"Who was that?" Mrs. Twist asked when Jack came back inside.

"Oh, just somebody I knew back in Childress." Jack said eying Ennis nervously.

"Well for heavens sakes; why didn't you introduce us?" Mrs. Twist asked.

"He didn't come all this way to visit, Momma; he came to borrow money." Jack explained.

"Oh." She thought about it a minute then said, "I got a little I can spare."

"We do too." Lily offered.

"We'd be glad to help." Lyla said. "How much does he need?"

"NO!" Jack said. "You don't know this guy. You loan him money one time and he'll be back again and again. Besides; you don't need to be loanin money to a gambler."

"A gambler?" Mrs. Twist asked. "Oh dear. How much does he owe?"

"Goodness!" Lyla said, shocked.

"Will he be in big trouble it he can't pay?" Lily asked. "You see that kind a thing all the time on TV."

"Maybe we should help him... just this one time." Mrs. Twist said.

"Momma, he needs fifty thousand dollars!" Jack said, hoping to put this entire incident to rest.

"Ohhh." All three ladies gasped.

"And he came to you thinkin you had that kind a money to loan?" Mrs. Twist asked.

"He wanted me to ask Lureen for it." Jack said, noticing that Ennis hadn't said a word.

Everyone in the room was struck silent at that.

"What do you think will happen to him?" Lily asked.

"He'll go home and ask his wife for it." Jack explained. "She'll be mad as hell for a while, but she'll pay it and forgive him. She always does. That kind a money is nothin to them."

"My goodness." Mrs. Twist said. "What interesting friends you have."

"Had; Momma. Past tense." Jack said as he and Ennis headed out the door.

"You wanna talk about it?" Ennis asked later as they sat together in front of their fireplace.

"Not really." Jack said honestly. "But I don't want there to be no secrets between us, so if you got any questions you wanna ask; I'll answer 'em."

"So this guy... he was more than just a friend?" Ennis asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah; unfortunately." Jack answered. "He's married to Lureen's best friend."

Ennis said nothing, just sat there staring into the fire.

"There never was nothin serious between us." Jack said. "He was better than nothin – but not by much."

Ennis gave a little huff. "So you haven't been spendin these last two years pinin away for him?"

"Hell no!" Jack nearly shouted and turned to face him.

"Good; cause I'd hate to have to fight him for you." Ennis gave him a little grin. "He's as big as a bear!"

Jack swallowed hard. "You ain't mad?"

"Nope." Ennis said and took Jack's hand in both of his. "I got you all to myself now, Jack. And I ain't about to let some Texas dude walk in here and try and take you away."

"That couldn't happen in a million years!" Jack assured him.

"Good." Ennis said. "Cause we got a lot on our plate right now.

"All I could think about while I was out there tryin to get rid of him was that you were gonna be mad. Maybe even mad enough to leave me." Jack said.

"Nope." Ennis assured him. "For twenty years I kept us apart cause I thought it was the right thing to do. I didn't want neither a us gettin killed cause we wanted to be together. After we had our big fight, I realized somethin important. That it was me that was killin us – little by little – each time we said good bye. It wasn't takin no tire irons to kill us – I was doin it myself by denyin what we both needed."

Jack reached over and took Ennis' hand in both of his.

Ennis went on. "You and me, we got us a life goin on here now. The way it always should a been; could a been if I hadn't been so damn afraid. We're together now, and I know down to my bones that this is the way it's supposed to be – you and me – together. I ain't about to let anythin or anyone mess it up for us."

"Nothin will; I promise!" Jack said.

"We'll handle whatever comes our way, Bud. The five of us." Ennis promised.

"That's right." Jack flashed his million-dollar smile. "It's up to us now. We got the whole ranch to run; and three ladies to look after."

"We do. And we're gonna do the best job possible." Ennis promised. And they did.

THE END

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